Broken Paths
by Aldon
Summary: Star Wars crossed with many other anime. Within an instant, Ryder's world was gone and was faced with another reality. Faced with new planets, different humans, strange powers, and the human race has to fight for survival against new invaders/enemies. Follow Ryder, a high schooler, as he gets thrown into an adventure that takes him to the happiest and darkest times of his life.
1. Preface: The New World

_**Disclaimer:**_** I don't own any characters from any of the anime presented throughout this storyline.**

_**Note**__:_ This is just a set up chapter to explain what is currently happening within the universe of this story. I couldn't fit this in the description, but this crossover contains powers from a multitude of anime such as: Dragon Ball Z, Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, Hunter x Hunter, Tokyo Ghoul, Star Wars, Fullmetal Alchemist, Soul Eater, Black Clover, Imperial Arms, Fairy Tail, The Seven Deadly Sins, and many more. These first few chapters are a little short, but the pace picks up quickly. I've already finished 30 chapters of this story and will be uploading them once I reread them and fix any corrections that need dealt with. Feel free to comment or message me if you have any ideas or with any criticism to make this story better. Hope you enjoy the story!

Also, follow my twitter account for this story. There, you'll be able to find pictures of the new Galaxy and any other visual aid that I feel like would be helpful for you to see at: /Broken_Paths

**Chapter 0: The New World**

"We have to hurry up and find them," yelled a blonde-haired man wearing a camouflage uniform! A man with black hair wearing a lab coat ran on the left side of the man dressed in military clothes, and a brawny, red-haired man ran on his right.

The darkness of night made it hard to search for their targets within the densely populated forest. Their field of vision covered just about up to ten yards in front of them. "Grendal, can you sense anything with your En," asked the man in the lab coat?

The blonde-haired man kept looking forward and said, "No, but we know they went in this direction." With greater speed than a normal human, the three kept running into the forest.

"This rock will do," said a man wearing a red and black mask sitting down behind a large rock. He took off the mask to reveal the face of someone that looked to be in their young twenty's. He had short, dirty-blonde hair and a chiseled face. On his right sat a man wearing white tennis shoes, khaki shorts, and a black, long-sleeve hoodie. He had short black hair that was styled as a crew cut. On the other side of the man in the mask was another man who looked in his thirty's. A black cloak covered everything but his head. He had black hair as well and a five o'clock shadow.

Sitting next to him was a women who was a women who was taking a baby out from a backpack made to hold babies. She hair was light brown and her face was flawless. As she was adjusting the baby, a young boy, around the age of four, leaned over and said something to the group.

"Why are we running, dad," he asked as he sat down and peered around the corner of the rock. He had black hair just like his father.

The dad, who was wearing a black cloak, exhaled a large breath, but then the man wearing the white tennis shoes and khaki shorts put a hand on the dad's shoulder.

"I've got this," he said.

"Connor," he said calling him over with his hands. He placed it on his shoulder and said, "There are very powerful people coming after your family. You know how you will be able to manipulate chakra?"

Connor nodded and kept listening. The man smiled and said, "Well, you have the potential to be able to do so many other incredible things." The man glanced at Connor's baby brother. "And so does your brother. However, these people don't want you to figure out these powers because you two could stop all their plans. That's why we have to leave this planet."

Connor was very sharp for his age. Just with this information, he knew that they needed to find a new planet that could be a home for humans. He also realized that he had to protect his brother over anything.

"Ryder," said the man in the mask. "I can sense them coming."

Ryder nodded in response then looked at the dad. "Y'all have to get off this planet no matter what. I'm going to stay behind to make sure these guys don't get in your way."

Ryder then looked at the man in the mask and asked, "How many?"

"Three," he responded standing up with everyone else. "Let me help you."

Ryder glanced over at the family he was escorting then said to the man in the mask, "No. You must make sure that they get off this planet with or without me. Promise me that, Korvin."

Korvin didn't answer for a moment then he said, "I promise," as he hung his head.

"Hey, don't worry about me," affirmed Ryder. "I'll be right behind y'all. These guys are nothing compared to me."

Ryder looked at the family and said, "If you keep going north," he pointed in the direction that they were running in before they stopped. "You will run into a field that's about three hundred square yards." Ryder tossed Korvin a remote and said, "Once you get there, press that middle button; it will make the ship visible. Leave right when you get there. I hid my own ship just for this reason."

Korvin glanced in the direction that the three enemies were coming. Ryder noticed this, and he could now sense them closing in on all of them. "They're close," Ryder said. "Now, go!"

The dad nodded and turned towards the woods. Korvin put on his mask and said, "You better make it to the field."

Ryder laughed as he said, "Your older brother still has a few tricks up his sleeves."

Korvin smiled as he turned to Connor and his family. "Let's go." Him and the family dashed through the forest in hopes of reaching that field as soon as possible.

'Alright, Ryder. I've got to give them as much time as possible,' thought Ryder. He pulled a communicator out of his pocket and said into it, "R3, get ready. They're on the way." He turned the communicator off and put it in his pocket.

Within two minutes three men appeared from the forest in front of Ryder. He immediately recognized each of them. "Well it's good to see you, Grendal. I see you brought your boys along."

The muscular, red-haired man scrunched his eyes and began to walk towards Ryder with a giant scythe in one hand. Keeping his eyes on Ryder, Grendal stretched his arm in front of his angered partner and said, "Strike. Stop it."

Strike stopped then took a few steps back. His red hair fit perfectly with the killing intent that was overflowing from his aura.

"Where are they, Ryder," yelled out Grendal?!

Ryder smiled. This was perfect for wasting time. "Ha! Why should I even give you three a hint?"

Standing on the other side of Grendal was a lanky scientist that wore a lab coat and black clothes beneath it. He threw his coat on the ground, and with a sudden flex of all his muscles, the lanky man turned into a blue, humanoid being that appeared to not be made of flesh. He looked like he was made up of pure energy.

The very power of his presence made Ryder realize that this man was no common foe. He was dangerous. Ryder had been to many planets and has fought a multitude of people, but no one was like this man. He felt concerned for what he could possible do to Alek and his family.

Grendal smiled at Ryder's reaction. "Well for starters, we can kill you right here and now, or just go ahead and kill that annoying family that you're protecting. However, for some reason, I just know you won't give up any information."

Ryder's silence made it known that what Grendal said was true.

"Looks like they'll just face the boss instead of us," shrugged Grendal.

"Wait. The boss is here," asked Ryder?

"Now, why would I let you know that," said Grendal smirking?

'This is bad,' thought Ryder. 'I have to get to them quickly.'

Ryder exhaled a deep breath and threw his hoodie to the side. Underneath, he wore a skin-tight, blue tank top. He popped his neck by tilting it one direction and then the other. After the second pop, Ryder released his concealed power. A strong gust of wind shot out from Ryder in every direction, and a whiteish gray aura now surrounded him.

"Let's get this over with," Ryder said.

Grendal smile and lowered the arm that was keeping Strike from attacking. As soon as his arm was by his side, Strike jumped towards Ryder with his scythe up above his head.

He swung it downwards right as he reached him, but Ryder calmly stepped to the left and evaded the attack. With great speed, Ryder spun and drove his right heel into Strike's back and shot him threw one tree and into another.

Ryder looked at Grendal and asked, "Is that all that your dog has to offer?"

Grendal only smiled as he looked to when Strike landed. Ryder followed in suit and saw Strike slowly walking towards Ryder with his head hung low. Black streams of aura came off his arms, shoulders, and back.

"You weren't the only one hiding their power," snickered Grendal.

Faster than before, Strike rushed Ryder and began to slash in all directions with his scythe. At first, Ryder was able to read and dodge Strike's attacks, but as Strike began to spin and do more elaborate attacks, Ryder started to look for an opening for a counter attack.

As Strike swung from left to right, Ryder crouched to the ground then swung his right leg and knocked Strike to ground. Just as Strike made contact with the ground, Ryder noticed Grendal out of the corner of his eye coming hot with a kick.

Ryder pulled up his forearms and blocked the kick, but the force was strong enough to make Ryder slide back about ten feet. He was panting heavily. It had been a while since he had gone against fighters like these two. Not to mention that he had to keep an eye on the blue man.

"Tired already, Ryder? I see that these few months of leisure have done you in," mocked Grendal.

"That damn Bingo Book hyped y'all up a little too much in my opinion," responded Ryder with a smile.

With his scythe down by his side, Strike poured his energy into it and the blade began to glow a bright white. Ryder felt the powerful energy held in it and flew up about 30 feet into the air.

Strike yelled and swung his scythe upwards in a 'U' motion. Energy in the form of a crescent moon blasted towards Ryder.

To combat Strike's attack, Ryder powered up his chi to his max and then shot three yellow balls of compressed chi at the incoming attack. Upon impact, the two attacks exploded causing a cloud of smoke to appear in between the two. Suddenly, Ryder noticed Grendal flying through the smoke with a ball of yellow and green energy in his hand. The energy was about three feet in diameter, and lightning crackled around it.

Ryder held out his right palm. A ball of blue and yellow energy formed in front of him.

"Big Bang Attack," he yelled! The ball shot towards Grendal, and the two energies collided. Ryder trying to push Grendal by adding more chi to his attack was being stalled out. Grendal was trying to push through Ryder's attack with pure strength.

Ryder yelled one last time has he poured all his chi into the attack. The ball of chi grew two times in diameter and was now a little larger than Grendal's attack. Even though Ryder's ball was originally smaller, it held its own because it was much more dense. Now that it was bigger and just as dense, Grendal was now on the defensive as he was using his attack now to just try to push back Ryder's Big Bang Attack as much as possible. However, the power was too great as it enveloped Grendal's attack.

Once the Big Bang Attack made contact with Grendal, it created a large blue explosion that could be seen from where Korvin, Alek, and his family were running.

Alek stopped and looked back at the blue explosion. "Boswell is there."

Ahead of Alek, Korvin stopped and turned to him and said, "Alek, we have to go. We don't have time to stop."

Alek nodded and continued to run with his family and Korvin.

The explosion was large enough to hit Strike in it as well. Him and Grendal were lying on the ground unconscious now.

"Pathetic," said a voice to Ryder's side.

Ryder lowered back to the ground and said, "I completely forgot you were here. Why didn't you help them?"

"I was interested in your powers, and to be honest, I would be like Strike if I wasn't in this form." Tilting his head to the side he said, "I'm still curious if you can stand up to me though. However, if one of my theories about you is true then you might have a chance, but as you are now, you have a zero percent chance."

Ryder was breathing hard. His arms ached from Grendal's kick, and he felt exhausted from using such a powerful attack.

"You might want to unleash your full power right now. As you know, I, the great doctor Boswell, can destroy armies in the snap of a finger. Now, what do you have, you monkey," said the doctor.

'He must've figured it out,' thought Ryder. 'I'll have to go all out if I want to leave here alive.'

"Fine, Boswell. If you wanted my full power, here it comes," yelled Ryder!

Bending his knees and flexing his arms, Ryder began increasing his power at an enormous rate. The wind coming from him shot from him harder and faster. As his chi levels grew and grew, his hair began to stand up from the pressure of his energy.

"Yes," yelled Boswell looking on in euphoria! "What a tremendous life force! Show me your full power!"

Ryder felt his powers reaching their limit, but he knew that he had to push through that very limit.

Feeling an incredible power build up, Grendal opened his eyes to see Ryder's whiteish gray aura three times to what it was before. As he continued to yell, small balls of yellow energy appeared and began to go towards Ryder as if he was absorbing them. After a few seconds of absorbing the small balls of energy, Grendal felt as if Ryder's aura was just one big bubble waiting to burst.

Suddenly, Ryder, who had a yellow energy outlining him, looked up at Boswell, raised his fist up in front of his shoulders then thrusted them down as he yelled one last time and released all his chi. A column of yellow chi shot up from Ryder and a rush of energy shot out from him in every direction. The power of that energy was strong enough to knock down any tree within a one-hundred foot radius of Ryder, and a crater had formed beneath Ryder who was now levitating.

Ryder's black hair was now yellowish gold and sticking straight up. His eyes were emerald blue, and his clear aura was now gold.

"Incredible, Ryder! To think you are a Saiyan, but I've never fought a Super Saiyan before," yelled Boswell!

Grendal continued to lay there in amazement. 'He had this much power,' he thought? 'So, he was just toying with me.'

Ryder rose up into the air and brought his palms together in front of him.

"Kame," he yelled as he swung his right behind his left and pulled his hands to his back hip.

A ball of blue chi appeared in between his hands. Blue beams of light shone through the gaps of his fingers as the ball grew in size.

"Hame!"

The beams of blue light shining from the blue chi began to spin around it like rays from the sun.

With a final yell, Ryder screamed, "Ha!"

He thrusted his hands towards Dr. Boswell, and a beam of blue chi exploded towards him. The end of the beam was at least four feet in diameter.

Dr. Boswell smiled as he moved one foot back and lifted his hand to meet the incoming beam of blue chi. The collision of the two powers pushed Boswell slightly backwards. However, Ryder felt as if he couldn't push against Boswell because he was absorbing it.

"Wondering why it feels like you aren't pushing me back any," asked the doctor laughing? "I am simply destroying or erasing your energy!"

'How's this possible,' thought Ryder. 'This breaks the laws of physics itself! Think…'

Ryder smiled because he thought of something that could potentially stop or at least slow down the crazy doctor.

With the power of the Super Saiyan, just like before, Ryder began to increase his power more and more. As he did, his Kamehameha wave grew larger and larger causing Dr. Boswell to destroy the energy at a greater rate. Feeling his energy peak, Ryder yelled until he felt the glass ceiling of his limit shatter.

Ryder's golden aura grew even larger as his muscles became more defined. Crackles of lightning pulsed through his powerful aura. The blue beam of energy grew to twice its size.

Dr. Boswell has a serious look on his face. He couldn't destroy the amount of energy that was being shot at him fast enough, so the force began to push him back gradually. Determined to show his superiority, the doctor screamed and began to break down the energy molecules faster and more efficiently.

"Boswell," yelled Ryder! "What happens when you defy the laws of physics for too long?"

Sneering, Dr. Boswell said, "Guess we'll have to find out!"

After about ten more seconds of Dr. Boswell breaking the first law of thermodynamics: energy can neither be created nor destroyed, the surrounding trees and light started to become wavy.

Ryder and Dr. Boswell both noticed this, but they continued. Ryder was now using all his strength to defeat Boswell.

Suddenly, a few trees around them began to disappear and then reappear. A few others spawned duplicates right next to where they're standing.

Korvin, Alek, and his family were about fifty feet into the field that Ryder had told them about when they stopped running. They're surroundings looked strange as they were now wavy. Groups of trees randomly spawned sporadically in the barren field. Behind them in the woods, a large glow of blue light radiated through the dense forest.

Korvin could feel the air starting to get thick and heavy. About one-hundred feet ahead of them, a ship started to flicker between visibility and invisibility.

"Over there," yelled Korvin as he pointed to the ship. The four of them began running towards the ship. Korvin pulled out the remote and pressed the middle button, and the ship remained visible.

Suddenly, a short man in a white suit with a taller man dressed casually walked out from behind the ship.

"Aren't those two back there amazing," he asked?

No one responded. They knew he was talking about Ryder and whoever he was fighting.

"Y'all know what I want. Now, hand them over," he declared.

The mother pulled Connor close to her and wrapped her arms around him.

Alek took a step forward and said, "Get the hell away from my family."

Just then, lightning crackled in the sky, but when Alek looked up to see the bolt of lightning, it never went away.

"Interesting," said the short man in response to the bolt of lightning not going away. "It seems like this world can't take the power of those two back there. I never would've thought that Boswell using his power to this extent would cause this to happen," he said to his partner.

A few more bolts of lightning appeared in the sky and didn't fade away too.

Ryder looked up to the sky, and noticed the white cracks in the sky. 'No way that those were just casual bolts,' thought Ryder. 'They're too thick, and I can feel a depth to them." He could feel a strange power coming from those cracks.

Just as Ryder was about to pulled away from his Kamehameha wave, the entire ground shook and the sky was filled with a bright flash of light. The flash was powerful enough to knock both Ryder and Dr. Boswell into the ground.

Back to his normal form, Ryder rose back up to his feet. 'What the hell is going on,' he thought to himself. 'I don't sense planets Bridum, Corvel, or Namushi anymore. And now I sense large groups of energy that I've never felt before.'

Ryder wiped his eyes and could now slightly see in front of him. The light in the sky was slowly fading back to the night sky. "I need to get to Korvin and them," he muttered. He placed his index and middle finger on his head as he searched for Korvin's energy.

"There you are," he said. Within a millisecond, Ryder had disappeared from his previous battle ground.

"What the hell was that," muttered Korvin.

"Where did that flash come from," asked Alek.

The baby on the mother's back was crying from the shake and flash. "Shhhhh," she said quieting him down.

The short man rose back up to his feet and looked up into the sky. The white cracks were no longer there, but he could feel something different.

Within an instant, Ryder appeared behind Alek and his family. His blue shirt had singe holes in it, and he was visibly exhausted. Alek, noticing this, raised his hand towards Ryder.

Some of the aches that Ryder was feeling were suddenly gone, and he felt a little less tired now. He looked at Alek and said, "Thanks."

Ryder turned his head to the short man and his partner then said, "You've already caused this galaxy enough trouble already."

"I'm not leaving without getting what I want," the short man in the white suit responded.

Behind him, the ship's exit ramp slowly lowered as the whole ship began to rise.

"Korvin, R3 is in there and is ready to take y'all far away. When its close enough, take them and leave," explained Ryder.

The short man smiled as he noticed the ship getting into position for the family's escape. He jumped onto the exit ramp as it kept rising up then said, "They won't escape."

"Get ready," Ryder told Korvin as his placed his index and middle finger on his forehead.

In a split second, Ryder had disappeared then reappeared behind the man on the exit ramp. He put his hands on the man's back and said, "Get the hell off my ship, Hannibal."

Ryder shot a massive blast of yellow chi through his hands and hit Hannibal into the ground. Taking advantage of the situation, he flew down to Hannibal's partner and began attacking him with a flurry of punches and kicks. Hannibal's partner snickered as blocked and dodged Ryder's attack. One punch, the man dodged it then grab ahold of Ryder's arm and swung him into the ground. However, Ryder got up as fast as he could and got back to attacking him.

Meanwhile, Korvin was helping Alek and his family escape by guarding them as they jumped up onto the exit ramp that was now directly above them. Alek's wife and son, Connor, were already on board. Korvin and Alek nodded at each other then jumped up to regroup with them. Looking down at Ryder, he was too busy fighting to be able to escape with them. Hannibal was slowly starting to get up as well.

Korvin ran into the cockpit and pushed the thrusters forward, and the ship steadily sped off. Alek appeared in the cockpit and told Korvin, "We have to help Ryder. He'll die if we don't."

"No," he responded firmly. "He knew that it would come to this. We all know getting your family away is our first priority."

"Then where too," asked Alek. "Hannibal knows every planet like the back of his hand."

"I know you felt it too," said Korvin turning to look Alek in the eyes. "The fight between Ryder and the three that were chasing us did something to this galaxy. I can feel different planets here. A lot of energy on them too. The planet with the most energy will be the best bet for y'all."

Alek sat down next to him and said, "What about Sydney? The Nine-Tailed Fox is getting restless inside her. She won't be able to contain him for much longer."

Korvin sighed. This was a lot for anyone to go through let alone a family. "It would be wise for y'all to split up." Alek looked at Korvin in a shock.

"No way! We aren't splitting up!"

"Look, I know you don't want to, but say Hannibal does come to this planet. You'd reduce the chances of him taking both your kids if y'all split up. I could take Connor and Sydney to a place that's directly opposite from y'all, and I can train Connor so that he can become the next Jinchuuriki." Korvin sighed. "I really don't see another solution."

"There will come a time when he finds us though," said Alek softly.

"I will keep Sydney and Connor hidden for as long as I can. As for your other son, raise him like a normal kid up until that point. I can become a mercenary and learn from the underworld when Hannibal finds your location. That way you'd be prepared."

Standing up, Alek said, "I need to go talk with Sydney. Fly the ship to the planet with the most energy."

Korvin nodded and directed the ship towards toward a new planet that was now in between their two planets: Dxun and Dantooine.

In the same galaxy that you and I are in, there was a great change. A change that has changed every country on Earth into a fight for survival. Instead of worrying about another country, they had to worry about invaders from space as well.

In 2000, the entire planet of Earth was celebrating the start of a new millennium. A millennium that would bring forth advancements in technology and space exploration. On January 20th, a meteor could be seen fly across the dark, night sky. Once it crossed the horizon, a bright flash of light engulfed the entire sky blinding anyone that was outside.

Once the light receded, hundreds upon thousands of stars were visible to everyone. In the distance, there was one star that seemed a bit larger than every other one. It just sat there and shined without a single twinkle.

On the other side of the world, where it was day, their change was drastically incredible. When the bright light was no more, people opened their eyes to see not one, but two suns. One was on the left and the other was on the right, and straight in between those was a planet that wasn't there before. It looked a little smaller than the moon, but it was there and visible.

Within a single day, scientists and astrologist discovered an additional forty-seven planets. The only original planets that survived were Saturn, Uranus, Pluto, and of course, Earth. The researches began to theorize how this could have happened, and many believe that the meteor crashed into Jupiter creating all these other planets. However, upon seeing how there were many planets with plant life and flowing water, they knew that the dismemberment of Jupiter was not the case. A small sect of scientist and conspiracy theorist believed that the meteor was actually Earth crossing through a worm-hole that took them to another galaxy or dimension. There has been no confirmed explanation.

It is currently 2017. After seventeen years of this new reality, life has just gotten harder and harder for the people of Earth. Some plants weren't used to gaining energy from two suns, so they grew exponentially faster. This caused a rise in forestry, jungles, and rainforests. Some trees grew to be one hundred and forty feet tall. A solid hundred feet taller than the average tree.

Along with the change in ecosystems, Earth found out that there was also humans and living beings on other planets through foreign explorations and invaders. The first time Earth was invaded, a group of explorers from the planet Dxun came to see what this new planet had to offer. Dxun was the planet that was right in between the two suns when the bright flash of light appeared. These explorers happened to land in Atlanta, Georgia in what looked like a cargo ship from Star Trek. The military quickly got to where they landed.

The explorers were humans and talked English as well. They were able to sit down and have a discussion with the President who was there within a few hours. They told him that the Earth suddenly appeared, so they wanted to know if there were living creatures here, and what the plant life was like. The President along with some advisors were invited to go meet with the Queen of Dxun, and so they did.

The President was able to get blueprints for new ships and weapons as long as they ally with Dxun. Once the President and his advisors got back, the United States began researching levitation for the purpose of speeders, laser rifles, and high powered thrusters. With this research they were able to build an engine that allowed a ship to travel at mach speed for a period of time. This discovery changed the way that the US and other countries began to make, not planes, but starships and large cruisers.

In the present, the United States of America is not the powerhouse that it once was back in the 80s and early 2000s. Their economy is decent because of the exportation of new scientific advancements. Things like starships, large transport ships, laser rifles, and speeders sold for profit.

President Kaiden Reed has been in office for three years and plans to run for re-election to further the progress his presidency has made thus far. While in office, President Reed has revitalized the city of Detroit and other ran down cities into an industrial district that works to build commercial and military land/sky transport vehicles. Since Detroit was a lost cause, the reverse in its condition has sparked a nation-wide sense of loyalty, pride, and love in the citizens of this great nation.

Most importantly, the President and his Secretary of Defense, General Clinton Hall, created a top-secret strike team organization: The Nokmim, to fight off special targets sent by either invaders or other nations. The Nokmim is an organization designed to be the best of the best that carry out the most dangerous missions that are of the highest risk and importance. Other countries including: Great Britain, Germany, Canada, Australia, France, and Italy are allied with the US to take down the evil in the world. They are the Allied Forces.

The Allied Forces' main enemy is the ISIS Empire found in the Middle East and some northern parts of Africa. They rose to power in the early 2000s due to the lack of leadership and strength by the western nations and the nations in Europe. There is also speculation that foreign explorers have met with them and either possibly traded information or resources.

Their emperor, Delshad Wakeman, is the cousin of Osama bin-Laden and holds a greater hate towards the world than his older cousin did. Emperor Wakeman is a tyrant known for ruling with an iron fist and has achieved so much power that no one dares to try and overthrow him. He began his conquest in Saudi Arabia but has since then taken over all the middle east including: India, Turkey, and northeast Africa (Sudan, Egypt, and Libya). He has been able to take these lands due because he has somehow created a small faction in his army that have special powers that have never been seen before.

Using these soldiers, the Emperor created his own special task force, the Black Hand. Not much is known about this group except that no one has lived to tell about their encounter. Along with the ISIS Empire, Russia, China, Japan, and North Korea are in an alliance to destroy the Allied Forces and to rule the world with one leader, Delshad Wakeman.

_Leave a review telling me what you think of the plot and storyline so far. Read the next chapter and tell me what you think!_

_~Aldon_


	2. Chapter 1: Public Enemy Number One

_**Disclaimer:**_** This Crossover deals with original characters with powers that I have neither created or own. The name 'FanFiction' implies I own nothing.**

_**Note:**_** There are a lot of anime powers in this storyline. There aren't any anime characters, but their powers are personified within others. You'll see how this works. Like I said last chapter, I've already written 30 chapters for this, so keep reading (it picks up at chapter 4 and 5). But, I think this story will probably be about 40 chapters. I also have plans to make a sequel to this story, but I'm thinking of making the sequel an alternate ending. That way there will be an ending for this storying line, but you'll also have the option for a second story. At that point (or any point), if anyone has any ideas of possible lot ideas, feel free to message me. I have a detailed layout for the entire storyline for this part, but the second part is very generalized. However, it will get done, because this has been a passion of mine since late 2017. So, please be patient with me, this is my first FanFiction, but please criticize. The chapters do get longer starting around chapter 4 (there's a chapter that is 16 pages = 9,000 words: it's a detailed chapter to say the least). Anyways, enjoy...**

Follow my twitter account for this story. There, you'll be able to find pictures of the new Galaxy and any other visual aid that I feel like would be helpful for you to see at: /Broken_Paths - *for some reason it isn't letting me put two "underscores". If you do just one, it will take you to a little kid's account. However, if you do two, it will take you to this FanFiction's account. I will post pictures, when a chapter comes out, and even pictures that provide sneak peaks for future chapters. Like I said, I've already done a lot of the chapters, I just have to review them. I've completed the whole story in my notes, I just have to type it out as well. I plan on making a follow-up story as well.

**Chapter 1: Public Enemy Number One**

It was a warm day in May, but inside the White House, it was hot with chaos. President Reed sat in the Oval Office, surrounded by his cabinet members all saying their suggestions at once.

"We should just nuke the Middle East right now!"

"Sir, let me send in my best troop to take out the Black Hand!"

"Mr. President, we should attack the ISIS Empire with the entire Allied Forces!"

He knew that none of these suggestions were the correct choice to make at this moment. Next to the President sat Secretary of Defense, General Clinton Hall, thinking of a strategy that could potentially turn the tide of the ongoing war. They had just seen a live video that was being streamed by a Seal Team 6 member right before he died.

The video showed a male around twenty-five sending balls of fire from the palms of his hands. The worst part was that bullets did not affect him. Instead, they went right through him as fire would seal the hole that was left as if nothing had happened. No one knew what to think about this.

Everyone was yelling absurd suggestions without thinking of an actual strategy to use against their enemies. Who was that man thought General Hall as he pondered that man's ability. "We need to figure out how that soldier could use and manipulate fire or else we might not have any hope" said the General.

"Put Dr. Roger on the phone" replied the President. The room fell silent as the President made sure the call was on speaker phone. The chaos turned into a nervous and anxious wait.

"Hello Mr. President" said a raspy voice that sent chills down the other cabinet members spines. It was a voice one would imagine that Hitler's most dangerous general would have.

"Give me something good," said President Reed wishing for good news.

"Our mole has delivered new intel on that soldier we encountered in the field today," said Rogers. "It seems that he was subject to a machine that resembles a lounge chair. This machine painlessly draws out any inner power an individual may possess. It seems that, with us entering a new dimension, people have super powers hidden deep within them. The enemy we faced has the power of the Flame-Flame Fruit. It is a power that comes from the anime One Piece. We've deduced that this technology draws out fictional supernatural powers found in TV shows or movies. Except, now these powers lie within people," he explained.

"Do we know how it operates and how it is created?" asked the President.

"We are working on that as we speak."

"Good. Keep me posted on any updates."

"As you wish sir," replied Dr. Rogers. "Also, it seems that the technology does not work on everyone."

"What do you mean?"

"It draws out the powers of certain individuals. We are not sure what the condition is, but we are looking into that as well."

"Thank you, Doctor Rogers, that will be all."

The room was silent as the expressions on the cabinet members faces stared at the president and the general. "Everyone out" shouted General Hall. Within thirty seconds the office that had been filled with advisors was empty except for two men that were confused, concerned, and intrigued.

A green button lit up on the president's phone and he swiped up for a holographic schematic of a machine that resembled a lounge chair with brain scanners and a computer by its side. "It seems like the participant puts on the brain scanners that draws out and reads their power." spoke General Hall.

"Have Doctor Roger and his staff work on this at once." ordered President Reed. A nod was all that was needed from the general to reassure the President that this task would be completed.

As the general walked out, President Reed opened his laptop and immediately went to Google. He thought over what Doctor Rogers said, "fictional supernatural powers found in TV shows or movies."

He began to type in Google's search engine and liked what he saw first, "Top Anime Superpowers and Abilities from TV Shows and Movies." As he read over the article, the president's jaw dropped the entire time out of pure shock that people now had powers like these. These powers were magnificent and some, very dangerous. He saw powers that included: ninjutsu, titan shifting, nen, imperial arms, devil fruits and much, much more. 'I need to find someone that can pass the condition for these powers,' he thought long and hard on.

Not everyone can know about this machine, so he decided that it had to be someone close to this operation. 'Doctor Rogers is the best candidate,' he thought to himself. 'He is extremely smart and perceptive, but if it backfires, then this could end up very bad.'

A knock sounded on the door. "Come in," said the Commander in Chief. Josh Ashley, the President's intern, walked in with a stack of papers.

"Sir, it seems as if our drone has encountered planets far away with a multitude of biomes on the other side of our solar system." President Reed gave a hand gesture that encouraged moving on. "The forty planets are truly spectacular. It might be worth sending out an exploration team to check out these other planets. We could possibly make bases on them too." Josh finished and stared at the President.

"Well… That's good, Josh. I'll think about it. You can leave now." Josh exited the room, and General Hall entered once again.

"So, over forty planets and most of, many of them seem habitable. We can't let ISIS get to the people of the other planets before us. They could convince them that we are evil!" General Hall was standing with his hand clenched in a fist. General Hall had seen the darkness of this war and wanted it to end.

"And we won't let them," replied Mr. President.

President Reed leaned over the intercom and called his Speaker of the House, Jane Austin.

"Hello, Mr. President?" answered Mrs. Austin.

"Yes, Jane. Can you start drafting a bill for space exploration." The President let go of the bottom to end his sentenced as he gazed into the gardens of the White House.

"Right away, sir," sounded in the background.

The next day, General Hall placed a file on the President's desk that was marked classified. He opened the file and the first piece of paper within it showed a white man wearing a white suite and fedora, around the age of forty walking out of a building that had sand around it.

"Who is this," asked the President?

"From surveillance, we have seen this man coming in and out of ISIS facilities. We think that he is a benefactor of some sort. He has many names via passports, but the main name he goes by is Dr. Grendal," replied General Hall.

The President began flipping through the file. The second page showed pictures of the doctor going in and out of buildings in Munich, Germany; Tehran, Iran; Mecca, Saudi Arabia; and Moscow, Russia. He always wears that suit with a white fedora.

"I wouldn't have showed you this so soon, but we had a three men stationed in Munich outside of an ISIS embassy. They had seen him go in and out a few times then down an alley on its side, so they followed him…" General Hall paused and rubbed his forehead. "They were found dead the next morning. One had been disemboweled and the other two had their throats cut."

President Reed flipped the page and got to the crime scene. There were pictures of the three victims where they were killed. The disemboweled agent had multiple poles stuck in his torso and placed on top of a dumpster. President Reed immediately closed the file due to the grotesque nature of the photos.

"There are other killings that are like this in those countries too, but they have no camera footage of Dr. Grendal anywhere near the killings."

"Assign a task force to look into him. We keep an eye. Hopefully, he will be able to provide intel on ISIS," said the President.

"Right away, sir." General Hall grabbed the folder and left the room and went to the CIA department wing of the building.

He walked through the double doors and inside were multiple computers at desks with a large projector screen at the front of the room. At each computer sat a CIA agent going through surveillance footage and other documents that had to do with someone that the government was keeping tabs on. Hall walked over to the Director of the CIA and gave him the file.

"The President wants a team to investigate the contents of this file. Move him up to the top five of our Most Wanted list," said General Hall.

"Are there any other details that we need to be aware of," asked the Director?

"He's a highly dangerous and intelligent man. Not afraid to kill on the spot, so take extra caution. However, that does not mean take your time."

The director nodded then turned towards his office and left the General where he stood. General Hall left the room and headed to his office.

"Alright, everyone listen up! In a few minutes, you'll be sent a file that contains content that is directly related to one of our new best friends. I want to know where he's been, where he is, why he's there, and where he will be in the future! He is an SS class criminal at the moment," announced the director!

_Thank you for reading the first chapter to this fanfiction and comment saying what you liked or didn't like! It'll help me write a better story line for the readers. Hope you enjoy the rest!_

~Aldon


	3. Chapter 2: The Man Without Fear

Disclaimer: I own nothing.

**Chapter 2: The Man Without Fear**

It was a gloomy day in Montgomery, Alabama, a city home to about two hundred thousand people. The dark clouds of May filled the sky, casting a dark shade on everything visible. It was also Ryder Jace's last day of junior year in high school, and the day could not get any better because it is his seventeenth birthday as well. After school, he was to go directly to the gym to play a game of ping pong with some of his classmates and friends.

Ryder was a seventeen-year-old boy and lived with only his dad. His dad was pretty good at sports in his high school days but never played in college. Ryder, on the other hand, was lanky and better with books, but he did have exceptional hand-eye coordination. He was around six feet and three inches with a slender build. He wasn't very muscular, but he wasn't thin like a cross country runner either. Instead of playing sports, Ryder worked at a local Chick-fil-A. His dad was an alcoholic, so Ryder could have a little extra spending money this way. Ryder had short brown hair that swept to the side and bluish gray eyes that gave off a sense of melancholy. Ryder had dark bags under his eyes from studying and working all the time.

"Hey Ryder! Wait up!" yelled Zakee ("Ziggy") running down a hallway in the school building. He had four pong paddles in one hand, and the other hand was busy throwing away all his useless notebooks that he used throughout the year. Zakee was an athletically built, black male from the west side of Montgomery. Him and Ryder were about the same size until freshman year when Ryder grew taller, and Zakee got stronger. He played football in the fall, wrestled in the winter, and he ran track and performed in the field events during the spring. They have been best friends ever since they can remember.

"Hurry up! I'm not going to wait all day for you," yelled out Ryder back to Ziggy.

Zakee scurried over to Ryder just in time to catch the door while it was still open. "So, you have decided to whoop up on some guys since it is your birthday, huh?"

"Wow, that some real mind reading right there. And no, I might as well get some fun in before I have to go back to work with some suck ups," replied Ryder.

Four other friends of Ryder met them in the gym. They decided that they would play three on three, and after each hit, the people would rotate on their side of the table. The teams were Ryder, Zakee, and Jake Anderson. Jake was a skinny white guy with brown hair and stood about five feet ten inches. He was the point guard for the varsity team and could break anyone's ankles. The other team consisted of Alex Johnson, Tommy Shelby, and Luca Jones. Tommy and Luca were on the basketball team with Jake and were the superstar duo of the school. They were all good friends that hung out and played a lot together since their childhood.

"You're going down today, Tommy. We're gonna be the MVPs today son." joked Zakee as they walked up the stage and to the ping pong table.

"HAHAHA! You'll be practicing like Forrest Gump when I get done with you," replied Tommy with a smile.

"So, play to 21? Just one game," Ryder suggested?

"I'm down with that," replied Luca as everyone else nodded their head.

The game started off with Tommy serving the ball over the net to Zakee. He hit it back across to Luca who was ready to smack the ball. 'If I act like I'm going to hit it hard, they are going to back up a few steps. However, if I put backspin on it, they won't be able to hit the ball,' thought Luca. He reared back but sliced the ball down low causing a lot of backspin.

Ryder quickly noticed the back spin, so he rushed towards the net. He returned the ball with a strong forehand and ended up hitting the corner of the table. Alex couldn't catch up to the cross-table hit, so Ryder's team was awarded one point.

"Oooooo, nice return," said Luca praising Ryder's reflexes and accuracy.

"Thanks, man," said Ryder. "Maybe you should, you know, get good." Ryder shrugged and chuckled.

"Damn, bro," said Tommy. "Ryder isn't holding back today."

The game of ping pong lasted for another twenty minutes and ended up with Ryder's team winning. The final score read : "21 – 18."

"When did you get so good, Ryder? Your balls were moving like crazy!" Zakee had never seen Ryder play like that before. He knew that he had decent hand-eye coordination, but this was next level.

"What can I say? New age, new ping pong player," said Ryder laughing as he walked out of the gym with Zakee.

"Holy shit, Ryder, you were on fire in there! I mean hit after hit was practically on the corners!"

"I know man," said Ryder. "I guess I just had that kind of touch today."

"You're damn right. I didn't even know you knew how put English on a ball."

"Just thought I'd try it. I mean it looks badass when it actually works."

"That's for sure," laughed Zakee. "So, what're you doing tonight for your birthday dinner?"

"I'm not sure right now to be honest. I might go out to eat at Street Café and get a shrimp bowl."

"You can come over to my house and we'll cook you up something if you want."

"I'll think about and let you know what I decide."

"Okay I'll see you later then."

"See ya!"

Ryder got in his small Toyota Camry and headed off to work. The Chick-fil-A he worked at was about three miles away from his school, but there was always a lot of traffic there.

Ryder got there in about fifteen minutes; just in time to change into his uniform inside his car then rush inside. Upon getting inside, his co-worker, Robert, behind the counter said, "Made it with two minutes to spare, eh? Smoking a birthday doobie?"

"I wish," replied Ryder smiling. "It would be the only way to make this job any better."

Hanging out with Robert was the only way that made working there enjoyable. Other than him, Ryder dealt with irritable customers, a manager that was honestly a dick, and stuck-up girls that were as fake as Nicki Minaj's ass. Every chance the manager got, he yelled at Ryder for what seemed like no particular reason at all.

"Ryder! Hurry up back there with the chicken sandwiches! We're getting a lot of people ordering them," yelled his boss from the front!

Ryder stood back there. 'Fucking dumbass,' he thought. 'This stuff actually takes time to cook.' He saw that a few were done, so he took them off and slid them down to Robert who was in charge of putting the buns on them. This pattern lasted until he clocked out at 8:30 pm.

Ryder only lived with his dad ever since his mother and older brother left when he was about two months old. All he remembered from the two was his mom's brown hair covering her pretty face and his brother's midnight black hair. Ever since then, his dad always opened a bottle of Jack Daniels when he got off work to help ease the pain of his memories. Strangely, he would always pour another glass full of whisky next to him that he never drank. When he was finished drinking, he would then pour it back into the bottle.

Back in his olden days, he was also a Special Forces soldier that was deployed months at a time during and before his marriage to Ryder's mother. He never talked about his mom, brother, or his deployments, and when Ryder would ask, he would go silent and not say a word for the rest of the night.

Besides that, Ryder got a long with his dad fairly well. He always helped him with his schoolwork or anything else that was important to him. Ryder knew his dad was broken, and it hurt to see his go to the bottle with his problems instead to him. Ryder's dad had a small-time job as a Waffle House manager. They survived every month off welfare checks from the government and the low salary from Waffle House.

Ryder went into the pantry and grabbed a bag of BBQ Lays chips and went straight to the couch. Ryder's living room had two couches that faced a TV that was standing on a mantel above a fireplace. They lived in an upper-middle class, suburban neighborhood, so Ryder was naturally curious on how they could afford such a comfortable lifestyle. He turned on the TV and flipped it to his favorite show, Impractical Jokesters. On the other couch was his dad passed out drunk mumbling in his sleep.

"Conner," he said stirring around on the couch. "Don't make him," he mumbled after that. Ryder had heard him say these two things repeatedly, so he didn't pay any attention to them. After an hour of watching the four grown men embarrass each other, he went outside to shoot basketball.

He grabbed the ball and shot. It hit the back iron and bounced back to him. He noticed that his elbow had been poking out a little too far, so he pulled it close in as if he was holding a magazine between his elbow and his side and could not let it fall. The second shot went in.

*CACHING*

The sound the chain net made was music to his ears. One make after another and after another until his wrist started to cramp up. "Wow, since when could I do this?" He took a few steps back and shot again. The trajectory looked perfect, and his release felt perfect.

*BVMMMMMMMM*

Suddenly, the ball stopped in mid-air. Ryder looked around to see what was happening. At the bottom of his driveway stood a tall man with a midnight black robe and a mask. The mask was black and red with a black bar that allowed the man to see. It had many scrapes on it that made Ryder think that he was some sort of soldier or foreign explorer. The bottom of his robes were singed from what he was guessing was from fire. Ryder felt a heavy pressure on his shoulders that almost made his knees buckle, along with a sense of fear and curiosity towards this person.

"What is your name boy?" asked the mysterious man.

He looked around to see if anyone else was seeing this, but no one was present. "Ryder," he said with a stutter. "Who are you?"

"Some call me the Prodigal Son and others call me the Butcher, but to you, I am a friend."

Ryder stood there confused, just then realizing that the ball had not moved from the air. The birds around them were not flying, but were frozen, and the tree limbs were bent in place from the wind.

"What the hell are you talking about," Ryder asked flustered. "You aren't making any sense." He began to pull out his phone.

"Ryder, son of Alek, the police are of no help to you right now," said the mysterious figure.

Ryder was starting to panic due to the threat it seemed like he was just given. He put the phone back into his pocket. "You still aren't making any sense."

The man began walking to him and said, "We don't have time for your childish questions."

Ryder took a step back confused about the situation. "The fuck do you mean, we?"

The man walked right past Ryder ignoring him and to the front door of the house. He opened the door and walked right on in. He paused, looked around and saw his dad passed out on the couch. The man walked over to him with Ryder closely behind him. The man snapped his fingers, and Ryder's dad's eyes began to slowly open.

"Wake up, Alek," he said in a stern voice.

Ryder's opened his eyes fully and sat up slowly. "There's only one person that would come here and make my hangover worse," he said rubbing his eyes.

Alek, Ryder's dad, stared up at the man and said, "Well, is it already time that we have another drink together," he asked?

'Another,' questioned Ryder in his head?

The man in robes took off his mask and revealed a handsome face with dirty-blonde hair that didn't go past his neck. He looked in his mid-thirties and had a chiseled face.

He sat down next to Alek and looked at the spare glass of whiskey on the coffee table. With his right hand, he grabbed it and swirled the whisky around in the cup. "I wish I didn't have to come at all, my friend."

Ryder's head was spinning from this mysterious man freezing everything around them. And to top it off, he knew his dad. "Can you explain what the hell is going on, Dad?"

The man lifted the glass and swallowed the potent liquor in the glass. "Do you want me to inform him, Alek," he asked?

Alek looked down at the ground and said, "No, this is something I have to tell him."

He looked up at Ryder and said, "This is Korvin. We served in the Special Forces unit together. We went through tough times with each other. He even knew your mother and brother." He paused as he swallowed a lump that choked him up.

"Ryder, me and your mother have 'special' skills that were passed down to you and Conner, and you two showed and incredible amount of promise even as young kids."

Ryder sat down on the other couch. 'So, that's why he always muttered that name while he was passed out. Conner must be my brother's name,' he thought.

He was astonished that his dad was talking this much about his family and background. "Why are you telling me all this now?"

Alek looked up at Korvin then back at Ryder and said, "Because," he paused. "Soon I won't be with you any longer."

Ryder's eyes widened with the thought of his dad leaving him just like his mom. "What do you mean you're going to leave me? You're going to leave like how mom did," he asked?

Alek didn't say anything for a few moments. Korvin jumped into the explanation and said, "Technically, you and your father are under a witness protection program, Ryder. Me, your parents, and other people are originally from this galaxy, but just like how the Earth traveled through a wormhole, so did us. We decided to help the US fight against the evil that traveled with us. Your father learned crucial secrets about our enemy at the time, and in order to protect him and his family, he was forced to move here and lay under the radar. Hence, working at a Waffle House. He wasn't allowed to make contact with any previous friend or family member as a result."

"We had an agreement that, if I was ever to found out by our old enemy, he would come here and have one last drink with me as a sign," explained Alek to Ryder.

Ryder popped up from the couch and protested, "So y'all have a plan to get us out of here, right? I mean I'm pretty sure this guy just stopped time outside! There has to be a way!"

"I was only to freeze things close to us to a few moments," said Korvin pointing outside. The ball the was frozen in mid-air was now resting at the bottom of the driveway in a gutter.

Trying to come up with ideas off the top of his head, Ryder blurted out, "Call the government! I'm sure they can help!"

His dad looked up at Ryder and said, "They don't want anything to do with us. That's why they send us a lot of money monthly." He looked at Korvin and said, "How much time until they arrive?"

Korvin tapped a button on his watch and a holographic radar appeared. "They are a thousand miles away and closing in fast."

Alek took a necklace off his neck that had a key on it and gave it to Ryder saying, "Go into my locked drawer at my desk, and bring me what you find in there."

Quickly, Ryder snatched the key and bolted to his dad's office. He had never seen the contents inside the drawer, but he knew it was something special. Ryder opened the drawer and pulled out a small pyramid that had a soft purple glow coming from the inside, a necklace that had a small wooden pendant, and a picture of him around two, his brother, Conner, and his mom and dad who were smiling. He rushed back to his dad and handed him the three objects.

He held the up the picture first and slowly wiped a few tears from his eyes. "You should have this, Ryder. This is the only picture I have of all of us together."

Tears were falling down Ryder's face as he sat in disbelief of what was happening. "Why are you doing this," he pleaded?

Next, Alek took the necklace and put it around his neck then grabbed the purple pyramid. He handed it to Korvin saying, "Make sure you give him this when the time is right." Korvin nodded as he took the pyramid.

"How far away are they," he asked?

"Three-hundred miles and closing," Korvin said.

Alek walked over to Ryder and gave him one last hug as tears flowed from his eyes. "I'm sorry for being a terrible dad, Ryder, but you have to go or else you will die too. The men who are coming have been searching for me for a long time, and if they find out that I have a son with me, they will torture and kill you too. I know you might not understand, but this is something that I've been prepared to face for a long time."

Ryder was in complete shock. He couldn't say a single word. All he could do was just hold on to his father a little while longer. "I love you, Dad. I'll make sure that whoever is coming after you will pay."

His father pulled back and looked him in the eyes and said, "Don't let revenge get the best of you. Instead of using that to fuel yourself, use the love that you have for me, your friends, and the world to grow stronger. That is the only way that you will be able to defeat your enemies." He looked at Korvin who simply nodded.

Korvin stood up and said, "It's time to go, Ryder." He looked at Alek then walked to the front door.

Ryder looked into his dad's dark blue eyes and said, "I don't understand what's happening. Why don't you come with us?"

Alek pulled out the necklace that he had just put on. "It's because of this necklace, and you. It can trap the wearers power within it if they die with it on. Then, whoever wears it next, inherits the previous user's power. Since your powers are similar to mine, your abilities will exponentially grow. You will be able to do things that have never seen before. Korvin will explain everything later. I told him to answer any questions you have. I love you more than you'll ever know, Ryder," he said wiping tears off his face.

"I love you too, Dad." They embraced for the final time.

Alek pulled away and said, "Now it's time for you to go too."

Before Ryder turned to the door, Alek took his old, leather belt off and gave it to his son and said, "Put this on and press the button on the front. Don't take it off until Korvin tells you to." Ryder put the belt on and pressed the circular, silver button on the front. No sounds or colors flashed. It just seemed like a standard belt with a button.

"Ryder, my last wish to you is that you find your older brother and tell him that I love him so much, and that there was a reason to why he had to be the one the carry that burden–,"

Alek was cut off by the sound of a blast. Alek frantically looked at Korvin who was walking outside, then back at Ryder. "Go! You must get inside his ship now!" Before Ryder took off, he gave his dad one final hug good-bye.

"I love you, Dad. I'll make sure I tell Conner that message." Alek smiled, pressed the button on Ryder's belt, then pushed Ryder towards the front door. He sprinted to Korvin's ship with nothing but a picture, the belt his dad gave to him, and the clothes on his back.

Korvin was standing on the loading platform of his ship that suddenly appeared and directed Ryder into the main hold where a panel from the ground was lifted out of place. "Get in," he said.

Ryder had no choice but to follow instructions. He tucked the picture into his back pocket and jumped in the hole. "Stay here until I come to get you," he said. Ryder nodded. Suddenly, the floor panel began to levitate and was placed perfectly back in place above Ryder. Korvin rushed out of the ship and towards the driveway. He pulled out a remote and pressed the top button which made his ship invisible.

It was pitch black in that small storage area, and he wanted nothing more than to look at the picture of his family all together. It made him feel so warm on the inside. Ryder began feeling around him, looking for something that might be a source of light. What seemed like rods were scattered everywhere, and small, taped boxes were stacked close by. Finally, he found something that was rectangular with knobs and buttons on it. He pressed one button and a screen appeared in the middle of the buttons and knobs. The screen took a few moments to load the picture, so in the meantime he just stared at his own picture using the light from the device he found.

His mom's scarlet hair was long and beautiful. The picture was taken outside with trees as the backdrop. The way the wind made her hair move made her even more stunning. Conner was a handsome kid and for sure a lady killer. He had a chiseled jaw-line and a sharp smile. Ryder looked as goofy as ever cheesing as hard as he could.

The light on the screen got brighter, so Ryder began watching intently. A picture of his house with three men wearing strange clothes appeared next to someone that looked like Korvin. "I get it," said Ryder. "I'm watching what's happening through a camera."

Alek appeared from the house, and he was walking towards them with something black and silver in his hand. A dark, red beam of light about three feet long appeared from the mainly black object. Korvin did something similar and another red beam of light appeared. The camera did not allow audio, so he just sat there watching intently.

"Well, well, well. If it's not the inglorious bastard, Alek Jace." A man in a military uniform with gold hair walked towards Alek. Behind him, stood a shorter man wearing a white suit and fedora. Next to him was a humanoid figure that emitted a blue light and aura. He was completely naked, but didn't seem to have a penis either.

The man in the white suit began speaking and said, "I'll give you this ONE chance because of our history. Where is your boy? I know you have another son."

Alek turned off his red beam and said, "I'll won't tell you a single thing!" He spread and bent his legs slightly and put his arms to his side and clinched his fists. Grass, rocks, and dust began floating, and the air became heavy making it hard to breath.

The glowing, blue man looked at the man in the white suit and said, "We can't let him build his power too much, Doctor. He was a very elite warrior."

The man in the white suit patiently stood there waiting for Alek to make a move. "His power level is now over three million, sir. I've never felt a power this incredible."

The doctor replied saying, "Have some faith in the men that I have chosen to be here, Boswell."

Alek was still building his power. Veins were showing in his neck, forehead, and arms. He stopped powering up and stood there. Steam was coming off his body in clouds.

"His power has stalled out," said Boswell. "Be ready for an attack."

Ryder was still in the small cargo area. He couldn't believe that his dad had so much power that he broke off chunks of their driveway and made them float in the air. "There's no way that Dad is going to lose to these chumps," he said confidently.

Alek looked at all four of the enemies that stood in front of him, including Korvin. He made sure not to even glance at the ship Ryder was on, because the Doctor would surely deduce that something important to him was on there. Alek began to raise his voice as he lifted his hands to all four of his enemies.

"Ahhhhhhhhhh!" He moved his hands to point directly towards Korvin. Right when he knew his aim was true, a large burst of blue and white lightning blasted towards Korvin.

When the lightning struck that spot, Korvin wasn't there. Instead, he quickly moved to behind Ryder, and readied his death blow. He thrusted his red beam directly through Alek's heart, killing him within a second. Alek fell to the ground with a loud, empty thud.

Ryder's jaw extended as far as it could. The hairs on his arms and legs were sticking straight up. Goosebumps covered himself from head to toe. Rage, passion, hatred, love, denial, and many other emotions filled Ryder simultaneously. "D… D… Dad," he whimpered. Tears began flowing down his face as the man he thought was one of his father's closest friends began stealing items from his dead father. Quickly, Ryder covered his mouth because he knew if they heard him, he would be dead too.

The Doctor in the white suit began clapping. "Good job, Korvin. I knew that you've been training on your off time. Mercenaries are so fun to use, especially when you hire them to kill one of their old friends." The Doctor slowly walked towards Korvin. "Do you know where his other child is, Korvin."

Korvin deactivated the red beam and simply said, "No clue, boss. Haven't talked to this piece of shit in about twenty years." He put the silver hilt on his belt and remained standing next to Alek's corpse.

"Fine," said the Doctor. "I know you're a worthless scavenger, so go ahead and take what you want of his. All I want is the body."

Korvin nodded and he reached down and picked up his black and silver weapon. He took the necklace around his neck then searched the rest of his body. The things he took from the corpse of Alek was as follows: the necklace, weapon, two rings, and a notebook. Korvin stood up, looked at the Doctor and said, "The rest is yours, Doc."

The Doctor stared at the items he took and said, "I see you're interested in his lightsaber. Why might that be?"

Korvin held the black and silver, curved hilt in front of the Doctor as he put the other two in his pocket. "According to legends," began Korvin. "This lightsaber belonged to the ancient Dark Lord of the Sith, the Creator of the Rule of Two: Lord Bane. From childhood all the way to his death, he used this blade and honed his fighting techniques. It has seen war after war. It's had kill after kill." Korvin ignited the lightsaber and a deep, crimson, red blade appeared. "It's said that the hum is so soothing that it can even make the enemy become paralyzed in fear before it kills."

The Doctor reached for the hilt while staring into Korvin's eyes. Korvin could see the red hue reflect of his eyes which made him look more sinister than the devil. The Doctor retracted his hand and said, "No. This weapon is too barbaric for someone like me." He turned and began walking towards the street. The glowing, blue man touched Alek's body, and it began to float and follow him.

Upon reaching the asphalt, the white-suit man reached into his pocket, took out a remote, and pressed the top button. Suddenly, a small star ship appeared. He looked over his shoulder and yelled back at Korvin saying, "Maybe with your payment from this job, you can buy a cloaking device as good as ours." The Doctor snickered as he walked up into the ship with Dr. Boswell, the General, and a floating corpse behind him.


	4. Chapter 3: The Blueprint

**Disclaimer:** I own 0% of any of this.

**Note**: The chapters will definetly be longer starting in the next chapter.

**CHAPTER 3: The Blueprint**

Two weeks have passed since President Reed had told Doctor Rogers to build this machine that they had received schematics for. The Doctor told the president that it was ready to be tested as of today, and that they had made a founding and an improvement.

"Mr. President, as you can see. Instead of one monitor there are now two screens. We have found out that our brain scanner can potentially unlock two powers that lie within people. This will give us an increased advantage for the fact that our soldiers have the potential to be even stronger than the enemy's soldiers. Now all we need is a volunteer," said Dr. Rogers

The president looked around the room and everyone who he had made eye contact with had lowered their head. "What happens if one tries to do this but they do not have any latent powers," he asked?

It became so silent that you could hear a pen drop. "The brain sensors will fry the participants brain leaving them dead or severely injured," replied Dr. Rogers.

"Is there anyone here willing to test the machine," asked the President to the scientists and officers around him. "Understand the pros and cons because there are both. If you succeed, you will be a leader of a top task force assembled by me. Yet, if it fails, then you'll go down in history and this great country will forever remember you" announced the President.

No one said a word. It stayed silent until a familiar voice was heard. "I'll do it Mr. President" volunteered Dr. Rogers with his chin lifted higher than normal. Everyone looked around in astonishment.

"Are you sure doctor? You know what will happen if this fails right," asked President Reed.

"Yes, I do, but I feel that I should test it since I built it."

"Very noble of you Dr. Rogers, I accept you as the first candidate for our very own machine. Do you know how to set yourself up in it?"

"Yes sir, all you need to do is press the green button when I tell you to," said the doctor.

He laid down on the chair and got his assistances to strap him down using the leather straps. "Okay, I'm ready," said the doctor settling his nerves and finally closing his eyes.

"Okay, thank you doctor for your services, and I hope to see you on the other side," exclaimed President Reed.

Every scientist gathered around as the President pressed the green button. Once on, the doctor immediately passed out consequently making everyone nervous. The monitor turned on and a logo of the American flag appeared on one monitor, and the other monitor show a rate that looked like a heart monitor After five minutes, a new logo appeared on the monitor. It was the letter "X".

Confused, the president asked around to see if anyone knew what it meant. All the sudden the same familiar voice said, "Its Professor X from X-Men." It was Doctor Rogers that said it as he let lose the straps that restrained him.

"Amazing. So, it worked," asked the president?

"I think so! This should mean that I have the power of Professor Xavier. Telepathy is my power I believe," announced Doctor Rogers. Everyone was amazed that the doctor was still alive and were waiting patiently for him to demonstrate his powers.

'This is incredible, we have finally done it,' thought the President.

"Yes this truly is Mr. President. We need to create a device that will somehow find people with this hidden potential," said the doctor with excitement written across his face.

"I didn't say anything, Rogers… That's amazing, it works! Congratulations on your incredible success! You just perfectly read my mind!" The President's smile extended from ear to ear. He walked up and gave Dr. Rogers a giant hug. "What are going to name it?"

"I think I am going to go with... Roxy. Yes, Roxy is perfect." Everyone was jumping around in excitement when Dr. Rogers stopped and stood still. "We've got company" he said.

Right after that General Hall walked in and saw the that everyone was high-fiving each other, and so he had assumed the process was a success. "Doctor, what power did you awaken?"

"I have the power of telepathy, I can read the minds and spirit of others. I think that I might be able to create a device that registers if someone has latent powers as well!"

"You must get on that right away doctor. If what you think is true, then we can succeed in stopping the ISIS Empire." said the president.

"Yes sir, me and my best team will start immediately. And yes, there are others in here that I sense potential in here… General Hall, would you like to see if you have any powers?" said Doctor Rogers.

Everyone stopped and waited for a response knowing that if it failed the best General the US had to offer would become useless. "What makes you —" but the general was cut off.

"Like I said, I'm telepathic. I can see inner potential, read minds, and speak to others in their minds as well. That's we're doing right now," said Dr. Rogers in Gen. Hall's mind.

"Alight, I trust in the doctors new found abilities. I'll try it." General Hall stepped up to the chair as assistants strapped him in.

"Are you sure about this?" asked Mr. President.

"I trust him. Don't worry," nodded the acclaimed General. General Hall took a deep breath and then shut his eyes. He was unconscious, and his life was now in the hands of a doctor that just communicated with him in his head. He said that he trusted him, but he was still worried for his own safety.

He heard the press of the button and that was it until he saw a bright light flash before his eyes. This startled the general so he opened his eyes. What he saw was like nothing he has seen before.

There was a girl with long, dark, straight hair, and she wore a dark black school uniform with a red trim. At the bottom of her clothes were singe marks. All that was around them was white. Nothing more.

"Who are you," asked General Hall?

"That's something that you have got to figure out." The mysterious figure said as she stood up and turned around with a long thin sword in hand. She had red symbols covering her body and red eyes with black surrounding them

"What are you doing," said the General slowly backing away from the girl.

The girl did not say anything and began to slowly walk towards the General giving a little chuckle. At this moment, the general felt something in his grip; it was heavy, yet light at the same time. He looked up to see her swinging the sword toward General Hall's face.

General Hall could only hear clapping and yells of excitement as his eyes opened to the real world around him. Many scientists crowded around the chair to see which power the General had. An arm with a sword appeared on the monitor screen and there was talk about what that meant.

"Congratulations sir, you have awoken an imperial arm. I do believe it is a sword of some sort. You were unconscious for a long time, did you see anything?" said the doctor after analyzing the screen and thinking upon it. Everyone's head moved closer out of curiosity.

"Nothing, it was like a normal sleep." The general said this because he could only trust two people in the room: the president and Dr. Rogers. He unstrapped himself and rose to his feet. He thought to himself about the girl that he had seen while asleep. Who was she? What was she? What even was an Imperial arm?

"Very well, I hope that we can optimize our new-found powers quickly. I think that I may be able to create a device that locates others with this hidden potential." The general had not noticed, but the doctor had read his mind when he was thinking about the girl he saw in his "dream."

"That's what I like to hear Doc," said the President. "Please start on this as soon as you can, so that we can prepare for anything that comes after us. I'd speak to you and General Hall in my office after this as well." The president was curious about the experience and the power they have. A thought that crept up was if he had any powers, but knowing that he was president, he had more pressing matters.

General Hall and Doctor Rogers began to follow the President to the Oval Office. Silence filled the air as they walked there. They got to the door and an assistant opened it for them and went ahead to shut it once all three of them were inside.

"Have a seat" said the president pointing to the two couches that were in front of his desk. "I want the full truth and nothing but the truth, and considering that this is a large breakthrough, I need every detail about your experience in the chair and how you feel now. Doctor, please start since you were the first." President Reed leaned back in his chair and prepared himself for a complex story.

"Sir, whenever I had shut my eyes to initiate the test, I saw a bright light flash. The light quickly vanished and a steel wall began to surround me. In front of me was a walkway that extended itself to the middle. In the middle was a circular platform with a chair that had brain scanners on it as well. A voice told me to walk towards it. As I began to walk, I started to hear multiple voices speak out to me. They were simple conversations, but I could tell that there were a lot. I felt something heavy in my chest every time I heard a voice. This experience led me to believe that I could create a device like this to find other people with their own latent powers. Once I woke up, I began to hear voices again, but I realized that they were from the people around me, and I remembered what I was doing. At that point, I knew what power I had; the same as Professor X in the movies X-Men." Doctor Rogers took a sip of water that was resting on the coffee table. "I could hear everyone's thoughts at the same moment." General Hall tensed up on the couch. The President sat there silently, processing everything he heard. It was outrageous what he just heard, but he knew it to be true.

"Okay, now you General."

"My experience starts off the same way as Dr. Rogers; with a bright flash of light. Once everything cleared up, I noticed that I was in a white void. It was an area of complete nothingness, except for a single girl that appeared to be sitting there in a dark black school uniform holding a long black sword that looked like a katana. I tried talking to her but that did not work. All she did was stand up and start walking towards me. Once she got about ten yards away, she lunged towards me and slashed her sword at my face. That's when I saw another bright light and woke up. I was still a little confused when I woke up, that's why I looked dazed then. What even is an imperial arm?"

General Hall started to adjust himself in his seat, giving an unsettling impression. "I'm not sure Clinton. Here let's see." As President Reed said that, he turned on his computer and opened Google Chrome.

In the search bar he typed, 'Imperial Arms anime' and a link showed up that said 'Akame ga kill Imperial Arms'. "This looks promising" said the President with Dr. Rogers and General Hall leaning closer.

"An imperial arm is an extremely powerful weapon that exist around the world. They are rare, and only the strongest of warriors are able to wield them. Some have the appearance of equipment or weapons, others can even be living creatures." The general straightened up and stood tall.

"Is there a way to search the arms and see if there is a correlation between the girl and my imperial arm? See if there is a girl in a black school uniform in the character list." The president moved the mouse to the character list and clicked the link. The first name that appeared was 'Akame', and she had a black uniform with a red trim.

"That's her! Who is she? What's her power?" The general felt anxious. He was finally about to figure out what superpower that had been held dormant inside of him.

"It says that her imperial arms was the sword, Murasame. The one-cut killer. It is said that once a living person with a heart is cut by the blade, a curse will spread to the heart within seconds and kill the victim. The swords trump card takes place when you cut yourself with the blade and resist the curse from spreading. By doing this, the user must embrace their inner demon and take responsibility of all the lives that the user has taken. Wow." The president stopped reading and looked up at General Hall. His face looked shocked. Any man figuring out he had a superpower that could kill a person with one swing of a blade would be shocked.

This weapon fit him very well. General Hall was 31 and had served in the seal team division for 8 years. He had once held off a squad of one hundred to three hundred ISIS intruders with two comrades, and each of them had a single bolt-action rifle. The numbers are all different depending on who tells the story.

There was a sudden knock on the door. "Come in" said the president. It was his personal assistant Josh Ashley. This was Josh's second year working in the White House as a graduate assistant coming straight out of college. He had gotten the job because he had known the President ever since he started interning for him when President Reed worked in a state office.

"There's a package here for General Hall, sir. And good afternoon Dr. Rogers." The doctor gave him a quick nod.

"Thank you, Josh," said the president. "Please bring it in and try not to let others touch it."

"Yes sir, I'll go get it now." Josh left the room and the President and Dr. Rogers turned to look at General Hall.


	5. Chapter 4: Start of an Adventure

**Disclaimer:** I do not own anything. That means: planets, powers, characters, etc…

**Chapter 4: Path to Power **

Korvin stayed put as he saw the ship of the man who hired him take off and leave the atmosphere. Immediately thinking of Ryder, he made the ship visible, and Korvin rushed to his ship b-lining it straight to where Ryder was hidden. He entered the cargo hold and lifted the secret panel from its place and peered into the hole.

Suddenly, a fist lunged right at Korvin's face. Having incredible perception, Korvin dodged it easily and grabbed ahold of it. He pulled Ryder from the storage area and embraced him like Alek had done just twenty minutes ago.

Tears rolled down Ryder's face as he softly hit Korvin's side. "Why did you kill him?! You were supposed to be his friend!" Angry, he backed away from Korvin.

Korvin wiped the tears from his face and said, "Because, if I didn't, us both would have died. Your father knew this was going to happen, and he made me swear that I'd be the one to do it. This had been planned for twenty years!"

Ryder punched the metal wall and yelled, "This makes no sense! What the fuck is going on?!" So many emotions ran through Ryder's head. Within the span of a single hour, Ryder had learned that his dad had special power, and supposedly he does too. He realized that evil people in this galaxy knew of him and were out to get him. Also, Ryder couldn't get passed the fact that his dad shot lightning from the palms of his hand!

Korvin walked up to Ryder and wrapped his hand with a medical wrap that he had in his supply belt. "Come over to the table," he said. "I'll answer everything there."

As he finished a small droid with two hind legs with wheels on them and a single front wheel came around the corner. Its panels were red, and the rest of its body was white. "Perfect. R2, go get me a bag of ice," commanded Korvin. The droid beeped then turned around to go to the kitchen.

Korvin guided Ryder to a table surround by two couches and sat him down. The small droid rolled up to the table with a bag of ice clinched in his mechanical hand. It dropped the bag on the table and stood there. "Thanks, R2. Now, get us out of here." The droid left and suddenly the ship shook then levitated.

"Hold on tight," Korvin warned Ryder who was still wiping wet marks off his face.

The ship stabilized and Korvin looked at Ryder. "Go look out the window," he said pointing to a window on the wall. Ryder walked over and peered out into the dark space. It was blacker than he every imagined. The cool thing was that he could see nearby planets fairly well.

"Turn the ship so that the window can see Earth," Korvin yelled up to R2. Very gently, the ship rotated giving Ryder a beautiful look of the planet he was just on. The green land mixed with the deep blue color of the ocean made him remember the beach trip that he and his dad went on.

"I can still smell it, you know," sniffled Ryder. "The smell of the salt water crashing against the shore down on Gulf Shores Beach. That was his favorite place. It's gorgeous," said Ryder. He began to chuckle, "Unless it was Spring Break."

Korvin smiled and patted the cushion of the couch and said, "Come on over. I have a few things that you might want to have." Ryder sulked over and sat next to Korvin who pulled out everything that he took from Alek's body. He placed it on the table and said, "You can take that belt off now too." Ryder unstrapped it and placed it on the table with the other items.

Ryder pointed to the two rings first saying, "These two rings were very important to your dad. I'm sure you're aware that he never took these off. He said that they held great power, but he never told me what the power was. All he said was trust me…" Korvin paused for a second to swallow a lump in his throat. One ring was a simple golden band, and the other was a golden band with a frosty blue, floral design around its outside.

"The belt you were wearing is a supply belt that hides the wearer's power level when the button is pressed. That's why the enemies didn't suspected that you were on this ship." He placed the belt down and grabbed the notebook.

"This was one of your dad journals. He called it, 'Force Applications.' I'll go into detail what the Force is later, but here you go." Ryder took the notebook and placed it next to the two rings.

Next, Korvin showed the black and silver hilt of Alek's weapon to him. "This is your father's weapon of choice. The lightsaber. It goes together with the Force. Legends say that this lightsaber belonged to one of the most powerful lightsaber duelist that had ever lived. However, I'm not going to give this to you until you make your own lightsaber, then prove that you are capable enough to wield two." This time, Korvin placed the lightsaber next to him.

Lastly, Korvin reached into his pocket and pulled out the necklace with the wooden pendant that Alek had put on earlier that day. This time, the carvings on the wooden pendant was blue instead of a darker brown like before. "The massive amount of power that your dad built up before his death is contained in this pendant. You can either absorb some of it while wearing it, or unleash it all at once in a very powerful attack. Once you use the all-out attack, the wood erodes within seconds though, so keep that in mind." He handed the necklace to Ryder who stared at it for a few seconds then put it around his neck. He liked the idea of absorbing his dad's powers instead of using it all at once.

Ryder felt overwhelmed that there was so much that he didn't know. He felt as if he was just dragged into another reality. He looked at the rings and placed both on his left hand. The plain, golden one went on his ring finger, and he placed the gold and blue ring on his index finger. They fit so well; Ryder felt like it was meant to be. He put the notebook next to him on the couch then put his hand on the table.

"So, what 'power' did my dad have," asked Ryder putting finger quotations around, power.

Korvin smiled and said, "Finally, an exciting question. Your father had the powers of a Jedi. That means that he could wield a lightsaber and the Force."

Still confused, Ryder asked, "What's the Force?"

"Another good question. The Force is an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us, penetrates, us, and binds the galaxy together. It was the reason why I could lift the floor panel easily." Korvin reached out his hand and closed his eyes. Ryder couldn't believe what he was seeing. The entire table that was in front of them was now up above their heads!

"Ryder, you were born with this power too, and the Force is strong with you. If you choose to follow his path, you will learn much more about it and grow even stronger," explained Korvin. He paused to let Ryder think about the possibility of following in his father's steps.

"However, the Force is like a coin. There are two sides of it," said Korvin.

"What do you mean two sides," asked Ryder.

"So, there is the Dark Side of the Force. A part of the Force that focuses on using emotions like passion to fuel your power in the Force to achieve victory. Its counterpart is the Light Side of the Force. This faction of the Force focuses on peace, knowledge, serenity, and harmony through the Force. However, your father did not choice either of those two sides. He believed in a balance between the two. He let the Force guide every decision he made. He used passion, but was at peace and didn't let it consume him," explained Korvin.

Ryder nodded slowly, still trying to grasp everything Korvin had just said. "So, this is the only power I have," he asked? "What about Connor?"

"So, like I said, you were born Force sensitive. I'm not sure if you have any other powers, but by training you would find that out. However, your brother took after your mom instead of your dad. He inherited chakra control from your mother, and since I know that you're going to ask what chakra is, let me explain it quickly. Chakra is a form of life energy that all individuals produce. When someone manipulates chakra correctly, the user can perform techniques based off the elements of water, fire, wind, lightning, earth, and combinations of all five of those. For instance, someone can create a fireball ten meters in diameter depending on their mastery of that element," Korvin explained.

Ryder fell silent after that explanation. "So, Ryder," said Korvin. "Your dad was my teacher. Do you want to learn the ways of the Force and become a Jedi like him?"

Before Ryder could answer, Korvin said, "Before you answer, let me explain both answers to this question. If you say that you do not want to, you will live a normal life on Earth, regardless if the United States still holds power, or if the ISIS Empire takes over where you live. You will work some sort of job, most likely nine to five then come home and sleep, then the same thing the next day."

"If you accept my invitation, then you will learn the ways of the Force, see the planets within this galaxy, learn the powers that go along with the Force and live an adventurous life. The downside to this path is seeing and experiencing death a lot sooner that when you would living a normal life. Like what you just saw, I had to kill my own Master and best friend because he didn't abide to the Light or Dark Side of the Force and made enemies with very powerful people. You will see people that you have gotten to know die right in front of your face, and you won't be able to do anything but mourn them once you finish your fight. That's is and only if you survive. This is the truth about this kind of life. Death surrounds you. There IS passion, yet PEACE. There is SERENITY, yet EMOTION. There is CHAOS, yet ORDER. Under your dad, I learned that a true Jedi must keep balance between the Light and the Dark. That's what I would teach you if you decide to join me." Korvin paused. "If not, then let me know so I can take you back to your home."

Ryder stood up and walked to the window that gave a beautiful view to his own planet. "You know," Ryder began. "I've always loved the stars and space in general. I knew I'd never be able to work at NASA and see space though, and now I have the chance to do that plus meet the rest of my family thanks to the powers my dad passed down to me." Ryder turned to Korvin and said, "Of course I want join you."

Korvin smiled and said, "I had a feeling that you might." Korvin looked down at his watch then told Ryder, "Well, its midnight on Earth, so you should probably get some rest. Feel free to sleep in however long you want to."

"R2! Come show Ryder to his room," Korvin yelled through the ship. A droid came rushing around one of the corners of the ship and stopped in front of the two. "This is R2-S1, he's our mechanic droid and a crew member. You can just call him R2. He's going to take you to your room."

*Zip zap do woo whip*

"No, don't do that R2. He's a part of the crew now." Korvin said walking towards Ryder. "Alright, let's get you settled. I think there are a few spare clothes in the closet in there."

R2 led Ryder out of the Main Hold and down a hallway and to his room. Within a few steps, they passed the exit ramp. The hallway curved left and opened up into a room that had that had two beds, a dresser, a chest, a nightstand, and a single closet. The room had a metal gray color with nothing on the wall; it was barren. R2 beeped then backed out of the room.

Ryder checked his closet and saw dark blue pants, gray mesh armor under an identical shirt. Hanging over the rack was a white belt to hold everything together. All of this was drastically different that what he was use to wearing. For instance, Ryder was currently wearing royal blue gym shorts, a white, dri-fit shirt that said, "PUT IN WORK" on the front, and his white, Nike tennis shoes.

Ryder walked over to the dresser and began opening drawers. There were five drawers in total. The top drawer consisted of bandage wraps, medical supplies, socks, and gloves. The next drawer had a large medley of shirts. The drawer after that had pants that matched each shirt. The second to last drawer had underwear and miscellaneous clothes that has emblems on them. The last drawer was full of shoes: boots, sandals (looked like Chaco's without the toe strap: the sandals from Naruto) with build in socks, and tennis shoes.

Ryder took off his clothes all the way down to his boxers and placed the clothes in their appropriate drawer. He walked over to his bed and got under his covers. The bed was oddly comfortable; something Ryder hadn't expected from a bed in a space ship.

Ryder shut his eyes and immediately pictured the death of his father. He felt ashamed that he wasn't able to do anything to help his dad stay alive. An intense wave of sadness mixed with some anger rushed over Ryder. In his head, Ryder knew that he didn't want anyone else he loved to hurt. 'I'm going to get stronger, so that no one else will have to get hurt because of me. I'll carry the weight of that pain so no one else will have to,' thought Ryder.

The next morning, Ryder woke up well rested. He took a deep breath which helped him come to terms with his new reality. Ryder rolled out of bed and walked to his closet. He grabbed the blue pants and gray short-sleeve shirt. Ryder didn't think that he would need the mesh armor.

Ryder pit on the shirt and pants, but saw how the pants stopped at his ankles. They were a lot like his joggers from back home. Ryder made sure to grab the white and clip it around his waist.

He wasn't sure what shoes to wear, so Ryder put on socks and his tennis shoes that he brought from home. Once those were on his feet, Ryder walked out of his room and into the main hold.

Korvin was sitting at the table that he levitated last night. In front of him was a plate of eggs, bacon, and cheese grit. He looked up to see Ryder standing in the doorway.

"Good morning, Ryder!" he said looking excited. "I'm guessing that you're hungry. R2! Bring a plate into the main hold for Ryder," yelled Korvin to his droid.

R2 rolled in with a plate full of the same food Korvin was eating with a glass of milk. Ryder grabbed the plate and cup from the friendly droid and said, "Thanks, R2." R2 whistled as it went back to the kitchen.

Ryder sat down and began digging into his food. He hadn't had bacon in so long; he forgot what it tasted like. "When you get done, meet me in the cargo hold," said Korvin.

Ryder took his time eating the rest of his food, and when he was done, he took it back to the kitchen where R2 was somehow running a dishwasher.

Walking into the cargo hold, Korvin looked up and said to Ryder, "Well, for your first lesson, call me 'Master' for now on. It's traditional for the apprentice to call his teacher their Master."

Ryder nodded.

"Good. From now on, I'm gonna teach you all that I know. Everything good AND bad." Korvin paused for emphasis.

"Follow me, Ryder." Ryder got up and began to walk with his new Master into a different room. "This is a freighter class ship called the _Ebon Hawk_. It might not look fast, but it can outfly many other ships in the galaxy. This is the training room. You will do the majority of your training here. Force and weapons training that is."

They kept following the walkway and passed through a room that's in the direct back of the ship. "This is the engine room. R2 does a lot of his work here repairing the ships engine, mach-speed engine, and many other parts. This room ahead is the cargo hold. It is a storage and parts room. This is where weapons are modified to optimize our battle skills." They keep walking and exit the storage room.

"Here on the left is where my room is. Do not go in there unless it is an absolute emergency, or if I tell you to." Korvin's room was on the opposite side of Ryder's. The hallway was identical, so Ryder assumed that the rooms were the same too. They walked to the center of the ship where a table and couches were.

"This is the main hold or the lounge area if that's what you want to call it. And down the hall right before the engine room is the turret access and medical bay. Follow me over here." Ryder had never seen anything like this ship. He knew that the government was making larger cruiser ships, but nothing like this. They walked towards the front of the ship where R2 already was.

"On the right is communications room. It's exactly what it sounds like," explained Korvin. "Up here is the cockpit. You'll need to start learning quickly because you're the new copilot. Any questions?" Ryder had no idea what to ask at this point. All he knew was that he wanted this adventure to start.

"What do we do now?" he asked.

"First, we need to get away from Earth. It's too dangerous there." Korvin sat down in the pilot's chair and patted the co-pilot's chair indicating to Ryder to sit there. "Ok, strap in and get ready to learn how to fly this bad boy," said Korvin.

Ryder buckled up and began to take in everything Korvin began to do. He began to memorize the order in which Korvin flipped the switches to turn on the thrusters. He felt the ship begin to move as his Master started to pull and twist the steering handle, and the Ghost was off zooming throughout the darkness of space. Master Korvin reached out and flipped a big green switch and then stood up.

"Follow me. It's time to start your training." They start walking towards the training room, and Ryder grabbed a water bottle on the way.

They reached the room and Korvin said, "Ok, we are going to start your Force training today. Now sit down and close your eyes. Clear your conscience of everything. It's an energy field created by all living things. It surrounds us and penetrates us; it binds the galaxy together. Now reach out with your mind. Feel the edges of the ship. Hear the gears and machines clank as they perform their work. Feel the experience that this ship has been through. Concentrate." Ryder kept his eyes shut and kept concentrating. Nothing happened.

Korvin made Ryder do this exercise whenever he wasn't learning something else like mechanics, piloting, strategy, math, science, alchemy, history, artifact history, or even acrobatics. Five days passed by. Then twenty days passed. Finally, on the twenty-fourth day of meditating in the Force, Ryder felt a rush of calmness wash over himself. He felt as if he was floating above a near motionless ocean.

Master Korvin started to speak saying, "Good, now keeping your concentration, open your eyes." Ryder opened his eyes trying to keep his concentration. He looked up to find that his water bottle was open, and the water inside of it was floating, constantly changing shapes. "This is the Force Ryder. Now try and make the water take the shape of a pyramid." Ryder kept his concentration and began to think hard about the water changing its form into the image of the Great Pyramids of Giza in his head. The water started to shake violently as one of Ryder's eyebrows twitched. The water exploded and went everywhere.

"Damnit," Ryder said frustrated with himself due to his determination to succeed in this task that seemed easy.

"Don't worry, you've done well. I've seen other Jedi take far longer to even take a cap off a water bottle, and you did it within a month. Now remember that feeling and keep working on it. Now, keep working on this, and bring me the water pyramid when you're done."

Master Korvin walked off into his room leaving Ryder to continue his training. 'So, this is what Jedi training is like,' thought Ryder. He was enjoying learning about this new power he had and all the other powers.

Six hour later, Master Korvin walked in. He stopped in the doorway in awe of what he was seeing. Ryder was still sitting in Indian style and had his palm open, moving his fingers like he was twirling a small ball. Three small, pyramid prisms were rotating in a circle above his hand. Incredible thought Korvin, and all within a day too.

"Impressive work Ryder. You have effectively learned Force levitation and shape manipulation fairly quickly."

Ryder opened his eyes and put the water back into his bottle. "Thank you Master. It got easier and easier. I think this necklace is finally kicking in." Ryder pulled out his father's old necklace then put it back under his shirt. "I'm ready for my next exercise." Ryder rose to his feet ready waiting for new orders.

"Okay, now you will learn Force push and pull. First, Force push is the ability to shoot a blast of Force from your hand that will send your target backwards. Use the Force to push your target backwards. And once you do that, use the Force to pull an object to yourself. Clear your mind and search for the object and bring it to yourself. Once you've completed this come and get me." Master Korvin walked off towards the main hold.

*Zipwoop duwop*

Ryder looked down at a screen that translated R2's beeps and whistles to him. "You're just mad that you can't beat me anymore, R2," Ryder said laughing under his breath as he stood up. He did as his Master told him and began practicing the push. This technique was more difficult than his last task. He knew that this would take him much longer to achieve, but he was determined to do it.

Hours flew by, and Ryder looked at his watch. It was 1:32 a.m.! Ryder stood up and began walking to his room. Over his shoulder he hears a voice call out and say, "Be sure to be ready for training at six o'clock in the morning."

Ryder did not have a say in this, so he replied, "Yes, Master."

Ryder began to take off his robes and left nothing but the pants on. Even though it was one in the morning, Ryder was not tired. If anything, he wanted to learn more, so he sat on the ground and closed his eyes. He reached out with his mind again, calmly concentrating on his surroundings.

Five hours passed by, but it seemed like mere minutes. It was now five-thirty in the morning. Time to get ready, he thought to himself. He started to dress and afterwards walked into the main hold to eat breakfast. On the table sat a plate with eggs and sausage on it that R2 proudly made without help. He sat down and started to eat the food. Master Korvin walked out into the main hold except he is no longer wearing his normal black robes that had built into them and there was not a mask on his face. Instead, his Master had on gray robes with brown boots.

"Make sure you eat everything. I had R2 put special vitamins in your food to increase stamina and strength," explained Korvin.

"Yes, Master," Ryder responded.

"Also, I felt you meditating all night. I'm proud that you did that without me telling you to. If you continue that, you will notice that your connection with the Force will grow dramatically. However, your physical body still needs its rest, so make sure you still sleep some. Once you finish, I want to see your progress in Force Pull." Master Korvin walked away into the training room. Ryder began to eat faster and scarfed down a glass of milk with it.

Six months passed, and Ryder grew much stronger in the Force. He learned how to use Force grip (push, pull, and levitate), a charged push, mind trick, and repulse.

Special sessions where Master Korvin taught Ryder many abnormal Force abilities were held. Master Korvin taught him Force Armor, which heightened the user's reaction time. Force Barrier which helped deflect blaster fire along with hiding his force presence. Force Enlightenment that heightened all his force powers. Heal, stun droid, battle meditation, Force Shadow, scream, and precognition. Battle meditation increased a Jedi's skills in battle and instill a little fear in their opponent. Force Shadow creates a long shadow, dependent on the user's bond, that allows the user to hear and see whatever is inside of the shadow. Along with these Force techniques, Ryder had become proficient with a weapon. He had been training with his Master in forms five, three, and two.

A large, stone castle stood on top of a cliff that overlooked a dark blue ocean. At the bottom of the cliff, waves crashed on the spiky rocks washing up onto the shore towards a pitch-dark cave. A dim light shone from deep inside the cave.

Inside, a golden figure at least fifty feet tall with at least one hundred arms stood in front of a white man with long black hair. He would dodge a few of the arms then get hit by the next sending him back into the stone walls of the cave. He struggled to get up after each hit, but never-the-less, he stood once again. This time, his eyes were different. They burnt with a deep red which seemed to personify his passion.

The golden, Buddha-like figure attacked again by throwing its palms towards the black-haired man. This time, he was dodging the attacks more fluidly. He planted his hands on one arm then propelled himself over the next incoming arm doing this continuously until he got hit with a blind-side attack. This fight lasted until he was too tired to dodge the attacks. At that point, the golden Buddha shrunk down into a human with gold hair in a digital camouflage, military uniform.

"That's enough for now," said the military man walking towards the black-haired individual.

He was sluggish to getting to his feet. Being hit by the massive force behind the attacks from the Buddha took an obvious toll on his body. "I have to… keep going," he said pausing for air between the words. His red eyes would have pierced into any normal person's soul, but the gold-haired man wasn't fazed by them.

"No, that's an order. To get stronger, the body needs rest too. We can continue tomorrow," he said.

His eyes went back to their original blue color that looked just like the ocean outside. "Only cause you're the boss, General," he said.

The two of them began walking back outside of the cave and towards the crashing waves. Once at the entrance, the student stood at the shore, closed his eyes and breathed in the refreshing air of the sea. "What are you thinking right now," asked the military man.

"Somewhere out there, there is someone who is training just as hard, if not harder, than me, and when the time comes, I must defeat him," he said. His eyes were open, and he sounded more determined than ever.

"What are going to do if it's him?" asked the General.

His eyes turned red again. He could feel the rage and passion coursing throughout his entire body. He clenched his fists and replied saying, "I'll make him watch hopelessly as I slaughter his friends. Then, I'll end his life in the slowest, most painful way possible."

While the young student had a stern and serious facial expression, the General behind him was smiling from ear to ear.


	6. Chapter 5: Crystals, Creeds, & a Coffin

**Chapter 5: Crystals, Creeds, and a Coffin**

It had been nine months since Ryder had joined his master on the Ghost. During the past months, Master Korvin had Ryder improve and polish the Force techniques and lightsaber forms that he had developed. However, Ryder was still a novice in the ways of the Force, but he has learned a lot of history and strategy while under Master Korvin.

It was early in the morning, and Ryder was flying the Ghost toward the ice planet of Ilum. The planet was about one day away, but Ryder couldn't be any more ready. This was a big test for him since this is where he will construct his first lightsaber.

Master Korvin had already told him many stories of this planet's harsh conditions and the animals that inhabit the caves that lie on the surface. Ryder's master has been in his living quarters for the past two days meditating. He had told Ryder that if he hadn't come out by the time they had landed then to go ahead and proceed on his mission. Ryder turned on the autopilot and headed towards his quarters.

A few days ago, Master Korvin had explained the roles that the Jedi and Sith had played in his galaxy. The Jedi were supposed to be guided by the will of the Force, but had become blinded by their "duty" to the "good". The Jedi Council had started to serve the Republic of Dantooine as peace negotiators afraid to step in if need be for the sake of their code. The Sith were the same, but they believed in peace and stability through the rule of a single ruler instead of a democracy, so they were always on the move trying to take over planets and subjugate them to their will. They found flaws in their ideals through the many deaths that occurred for their thirst of power.

In the middle of the two were the Gray Jedi. They followed the true voice of the Force. These Jedi walked the line in the middle without succumbing to the dark side and never restricting one's options to the Jedi Code. These Jedi were often outcasts that left the Sith or Jedi Order. Master Korvin had told him that this is what they classified themselves as. For they would do the true bidding of the Force. Ryder reached his room and began to meditate until they landed on Ilum.

While meditating, Ryder felt his head begin to start hurting as if it was the worst migraine to date. Suddenly, a bright light flashed blinded his vision, and the light slowly faded as colorful lights began to fly by his vision. The image of a lanky man in a lab coat with snake with colorful rings squirmed in his grip. That imaged faded as two young people, a boy and a girl, laid dead in front of him. He could hear their screams along with his own. When that image left, he then saw a girl, a beautiful girl, crying in front of him.

She said, "I love you. Don't leave me." Right when she finished talking, a bright flash of light took his sight away again until he found himself in a white room that seemed like an empty void.

The walls were white.

The floor was white.

Even the ceiling was white.

"Where am I," Ryder muttered to himself?

A feint voice that sounded very familiar came from behind him and said, "Did he even really love you? Have you made the right choice?"

"Who is that," asked Ryder as he quickly turned his head but saw no one. He could only hear the voice.

"You're weak. That's why they died," said the voice again.

"What the hell are you talking about," yelled Ryder in to white void?!

Just then, Ryder heard the familiar beeps and whistles of a new acquaintance, R2.

Ryder opened his eyes to see the astromech droid standing in his door way. Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Ryder wondered what just happened to him while meditating. Was it a dream? Who was speaking to me?

R2 gave a more impatient beep this time, and Ryder snapped back saying, "Okay! I'm coming!" He could now understand some of what R2 was saying. Ryder stood up and went to his dresser.

He was already wearing his black ninja pants (that's what Korvin called them), ninja sandals with a wrap around his ankles all the way up to the bottom of his pants, and a normal t-shirt that had 'PUT IN WORK' written across the front.

Ryder took off his shirt, folded it and put it in his drawer, and he took out a black, short-sleeve shirt with a high collar and slipped it over his head. Next, there was a gray flak jacket hanging up in his closet, so he put that on. Next to the flak jacket was a parka.

"Well, I'm definetly going to need this," he said reaching for the furry jacket.

Ryder left his room and found Master Korvin waiting for him in the main hold.

"Here is some water and tablets for you to take into the caves." He tossed Ryder both pouches of tablets.

"Also, take this sword for protection," said Korvin. It was a katana. The weapon of samurais.

"Now, when you get on the surface, you will see multiple cave entries. Listen to the Force; it will guide you to the right cave. A certain kyber crystal will call out to you, and that is the one you'll want to harvest." Master Korvin kept explaining, "Many Jedi and Sith have died here as well. Some of their crystal may call out to you, but they only look to lead you down the path that will kill you. Only follow the voice if it holds a strong presence. The one with the strongest presence is the one most compatible to you." Ryder listened carefully to the wisdom that his master was bestowing upon him.

"Yes, Master. I'll be on my way then." Ryder walked to the exit ramp and continued to go towards the icy surface of Ilum.

"Wait!"

Ryder turned around to see his master walking down the ramp. Without getting off the ramp, Master Korvin tosses his mask to Ryder and said, "Take this. It was your dad's before he gave it to me. It may end up helping you out down there."

Ryder stared at it then put it on his face. He felt a heavy pressure emitting from the mask. He knew it was from all the previous battles it had been in, and the strength of the Force bond it held with its masters and the Force. "Thank you, Master."

"May the Force be with you, my apprentice," said Master Korvin. Ryder nodded and walked down the ramp towards the unknown that Ilum held for him.

As he walked on the surface of the planet, Ryder began to study his surroundings. The whole place was covered in snow and ice. Surrounding Ryder, were ice mountains that reached to the clouds, and canyons that seemed to have no bottom.

The mask seemed to make him more aware and perceptive of his surroundings. Ryder started to use Force armor and enlightenment to heighten and strengthen his physical and perceptive abilities. He had walked about a half days' worth seeing nothing but ice, mountains, caves, and canyons.

After a few more hours, Ryder heard a deep whisper coming from a cave that had fallen rocks covering the entrance. He walked over with extreme caution and looked at the fallen rocks for a weakness in the structure. He closed his eyes, lifted his hand and used the Force to move the rocks away from the entrance.

Ryder walked into the cave and saw a long narrow tunnel. He could hear a dense hum come from the tunnel. 'This has got to be it,' thought Ryder.

After about twenty minutes of following the path, Ryder came upon three passage ways that were available to take.

He suddenly heard a voice say, "_Grays walked the line different than the Sith and Jedi_."

Ryder turned around to see no one behind him. The narrow slit in the mask made his vision limited, but it made him rely more on the Force constantly. He turned around and decided to take the middle tunnel. The hum grew stronger as he continued.

It seemed like hours on hours before Ryder had reached another door. The door had carvings of ancient writings and fancy designs around the outer edges. Along the top of the door, a cryptic sentence was inscribed in the stone.

"Thank you Master for lessons on ancient languages," he said to himself. He began reading the language, "_There was a time. A moment. When my destiny wasn't certain. That moment is gone!_" It was hard to translate, but he was confident that his translation was correct.

"_Use the force_…"

It was that same voice from the entrance. Ryder closed his eyes and widened his stance shoulder width apart. He brought his hands to the sides of his chest and started to build up the Force in his palms. The Force grew stronger and stronger until it felt like a one ton ball in his hands. He pushed it towards the door, continuously using the Force to try and blow open the doors. At first the doors would not budge, but as he kept pushing harder and harder he felt the doors give a little bit. Increasing his strength as time kept moving, Ryder was starting to strain himself pushing himself this far and hard. It was painful. His body was hurting.

The thought of how his father died flashed into him mind. His vision turned a reddish hue as he used this anger to increase his power. As he kept pushing, he could feel energy building up in-between the door and himself. He pushed harder. He imagined in his head a forceful push that blew open the door, but when he opened his eyes, Ryder saw small ripples and crackles of light between him and the door.

Ryder smirked, "A stone door isn't gonna stop me now." He pushed harder having an idea what the crackles of light was, and when he did this, lightning shot out from his hands. The force of the lightning that Ryder had just summoned was enough to turn the stone door into rubble. After seen numerous things that made him speechless, this was yet another one of those times.

He walked through the door and into the cave. Immediately, giant spiders crawled out of holes and cracks that lined the walls and surrounded him.

'These must be some of the animals that Master told me about,' thought Ryder. He calmed himself and took a deep breath. 'Thank goodness for Dad's Force Applications notebooks.'

Using the Force, Ryder reached out to the angry spiders and calmed them down. The spiders were very territorial, so they would attack anyone that entered the cave. Ryder just used the Force to make them feel at ease, and he sent them out of the cave.

Ryder took the mask off to get a better look around the cave. As he did this the spiders started to go berserk and attacked him. Ryder dropped the mask and began to dodge the attacks the spiders were throwing at him.

As he jumped over one spider, another shot him with its web and stuck him to the wall. The spiders began scurrying towards him. Ryder knew being nervous and anxious would not do anything good for him, so he channeled his frustration with himself and used the Force to lift all the spiders into the air. Suspended, Ryder smiled, then slam them onto the ground, killing them all.

He tore the webs off him and went to pick up the mask and swore not to take it off like that again. He put it on and heard the voice again.

"Comeeeee…" Ryder turned his ahead towards where the voice was coming from.

"Comeeeee," it said again. He followed it carefully. Upon reaching the back of the cave, he saw a tomb with more inscriptions on it.

"_HERE THE DARKNESS REIGNS ETERNAL. There is no sun, no dawn; just the perpetual gloom of night. The only illumination comes from jagged forks of lightning, carving a wicked path through angry clouds. In their savage wake thunder shreds the sky, unleashing a torrent of hard, cold rain. The storm is coming, and there is no escape."_

The phrase sent a chill down Ryder's spine. He calmed his mind and used the Force to open the tomb, but nothing happened.

"Noooo… Only through your anger will you open me…" It was the same voice again. He thought about his dad. How he was hunted down. Deep down, he even felt a hatred towards himself for leaving his best friends by themselves while he went off and learned how to use the Force. Why did he have to be alone? Ryder screamed out using the Force.

"Raaahhhhhh!"

The top of the tomb flew back so hard that when it hit the wall, it crumbled into small pieces of rock. Taking deep breathes, Ryder lifted his head and was astonished on what power that gave him.

He walked up close to the tomb and found a single lightsaber in there. It was about 25 centimeters long and had three steel spikes lining the side of the hilt. Ryder examined the lightsaber contemplating if he should take it or construct his own. After a few minutes of meditation, he decided to use that lightsaber. 'It called out to me for a reason,' he thought.

Before Ryder could reach down and pick it up, the entire hilt turned into sand. "Shit," he said. "I forgot the possibility that it hadn't been exposed to air in a long time."

However, sitting on top of the dust were two clear crystals. 'Perfect,' he thought. He reached and grabbed the crystals.

Ryder walked to the center of the cave and sat down on the stone floor. He remembered what Master Korvin told him, "Gripping the crystal firmly, pour the Force into them and they will turn to a color specific to you."

Ryder gripped the crystals and focused the Force into them. The crystals started to get hotter and hotter, but he kept his concentration. After a few minutes, the crystals cooled back down to their normal temperature.

The one in his left hand had turned into a cyan color that emitted a strong yet calm presence of the Force. The other crystal turned into a deep, crimson red that was heavier than the cyan crystal. Instead of a calm presence, the crimson crystal screamed out in pain and anger. Confused about how the two could be different colors, he was eager to get back to the ship and ask Korvin, so he stood up and began his journey back to the surface of Ilum.

As Ryder walked through the door that led to the cave, he could hear rocks falling behind him. He looked behind him and saw the ceiling begin to fall to the ground.

"Damnit," Ryder muttered. "I knew it had been going to smooth so far."

Calling upon the Force, Ryder sprinted out of the cave right before the tunnels could collapse on him. After dusting himself off, Ryder looked up at his surroundings and saw that it was sunset. Since many of the ice mountains had kyber crystals, the rays of the sun turned into different, beautiful colors.

After appreciating this planet for its features, Ryder pulled out his communicator and said to Master Korvin, "I'm ready to be picked up." Ryder looked down at an electronic map that he pulled out of his pocket then said, "I'm in sector eight-hundred and fifty-three."

He looked around to take in the final moments of being on this planet. Even though the planet was covered in ice, there was a beauty to the bluish white ice that covered the mountains around him and the gorgeous sunsets and sunrises here.

"I'll be there in a few moments," replied his master.

Ryder walked to the center of the area where there was an opening and sat down to examine the crystals. He held the two up near his eyes and looked through each other, one at a time. Each crystal gave a beautiful tint to the world, but you could feel that these crystals had a strong bond with the Force by the heavy pressure they emitted.

The Ebon Hawk descended close to the ground with the exit ramp extended. It hovered about fifteen yards above the ground. Gathering the Force in his legs, Ryder jumped up onto the ramp, took one last look at the planet, then walked up into the ship.

It was colder than usual in the ship. It was like the Ebon Hawk took on Ilum's icy climate. Still wearing the mask, Ryder walked into the main hold and called out, "I found two crystals, Master. They were in another lightsaber inside a coffin, but the lightsaber eroded into dust and left these two crystals."

Master Korvin walked out of the cockpit looked at Ryder and his crystals for a few seconds. "Tell me everything you experienced down there," he said confused and intrigued.

Ryder began telling his master everything that happened. How he started with walking the surface and hearing a voice that lead him to a blocked off cave. He told him about the voice that led him through the correct tunnel, and then his experience with the door and the lightning.

Master Korvin's face stayed expressionless during every part of the story. He told his master that when he took off the mask, the spiders attacked him, but he disposed of them quickly. Finally, he told him how he removed the cover of a coffin to find a lightsaber inside of it, but it turned to dust among contact with the outside air. How the crystals were just sitting on top of the dust, and how when he infused them with the Force, they turned different colors.

Master Korvin took a few minutes to think over what his apprentice had just told him. He had heard those phrases before, but where did he hear them?

"_HERE THE DARKNESS REIGNS ETERNAL. There is no sun, no dawn; just the perpetual gloom of night. The only illumination comes from jagged forks of lightning, carving a wicked path through angry clouds. In their savage wake thunder shreds the sky, unleashing a torrent of hard, cold rain. The storm is coming, and there is no escape._"

"_There was a time. A moment. When my destiny wasn't certain. That moment is gone__!_"

These quotes sounded familiar to Korvin, but he couldn't put his finger on when or how he heard them. "Can I examine these crystals for a moment," he asked Ryder?

"Sure," said Ryder wondering why his master was so intrigued. He put the two crystals in his hand.

Master Korvin balled his hand into a fist, closed his eyes, and reached out with Force. He felt the emotion that the crystals held inside them. He could see the pain, sorrow, power, and triumph that crystals had witnessed throughout their use. Korvin knew who these crystals belonged to now. He didn't the who the person was exactly, but he could see some of their memories.

He opened his eyes, gave the crystals back to Ryder, then said, "These crystals belonged to a very powerful Sith Lord that wreaked havoc and created chaos in the galaxy. They are powerful crystals, and they might try and sway you to a certain side of force. If you choose to use these crystals, you must be careful, for they will give you great power, but they will also try to corrupt you."

Master Korvin had a serious expression that Ryder had never seen, so he knew that this decision was one he had to consider carefully. A red crystal and a blue crystal that would grant him great power. He remembered what he heard at the entrance of the cave, "_There was a time. A moment. When my destiny wasn't certain. That moment is gone!_"

He looked into his master's eyes and said, "I'm gonna use the crystals. They will not use me. I came with you for the sake of power. Power to avenge my dad. Power to save the ones I love. These will help me, but I will not help them change me." Ryder's resolve echoed throughout the main hold.

"Alright," said Master Korvin placing his hand on Ryder's shoulder. "Then it is time to construct your first lightsaber."

Korvin began leading Ryder to the cargo hold where there were parts for Ryder to use. About half way there, Korvin looked back at him and said, "Also, keep the mask. It is yours now. It will prove useful in some situations." He turned and continued walking to the cargo hold.

"Okay, in the bins are the supplies you need to make your own lightsaber," said Korvin pointing to a few bins that had scraps of metal in them. "Make it however you want. Whenever you finish, come and get me so that I can see the final product."

Ryder was as excited as ever knowing that he can finally create his own lightsaber with powerful crystals. "Yes, Master. I'll begin at once." Korvin walked out with a smile on his face. It made him happy seeing Ryder like this. Ryder had given up a lot since they left and now, he can finally complete his novice trainings.

Ryder started sifting through the bins seeing all kinds of hilts, power cells, emitters, hand grips, and many more components. He decided to grab a piece of paper to try and draw what he wanted his lightsaber to look like. He started to draw a straight hilt with two knobs on the side. One was to control the power of the lightsaber and the other controlled the length. Towards the bottom was a grip that went straight up and down so that the control of the blade was optimized. At the top, he drew three prongs that started about a quarter of the way from the top and protruded from the top. In between two of the prongs is the power switch. Ryder liked the lightsaber that he just drew up thinking about what arrangement he should put the crystals in. He got to work immediately constructing the hilt of his lightsaber starting with the grip and hilt.

This lightsaber greatly resembled the one he found inside the coffin. He liked that one enough to the point that he might as well go ahead and try to make it.

Seven hours had gone by when Ryder finished constructing his hilt. It was 1:23 am. He decided to use the cyan crystal as the primary crystal and the red crystal as the focusing crystal. He used the Force to open the crystal chamber and placed them in. He closed the chamber and gripped the lightsaber firmly.

"Okay, it's time to test this bad boy out," Ryder muttered to himself. He ignited the blade.

The blade was beautiful as it emitted a purple blade and a crackling sound. The heat from the purple light that shown from his hilt was more intense than the welding tool Ryder had used back on earth. It was light, but he felt strength in it.

He swung it to the left and then to the right. The sound was music to his ear.

*Voom voom cccrrrrkkkk voom*

He turned off his lightsaber with a sigh of relief. He loved the color and thought that it was a good fit for him, but he had an idea. What would happen if he changed the order of the crystals?

Master Korvin had overheard Ryder igniting his blade and swinging it around. He began to walk towards the parts room while concealing his presence through the Force. While walking over, he saw a purple light disappear with the sound of a lightsaber deactivating.

Right when he peaked through the doorway, he could see Ryder using the Force to switch the two crystals around. After reassembling it, he ignited the second form of his lightsaber.

Suddenly, a deep crimson color filled the room emitting a powerful presence where a calm purple glow once was. Korvin slowly backed away from the door and walked back to his room with a smile on his face.

Ryder was amazed by how the different color of the blades affected his lightsaber. The purple blade was light and made him feel calm and focused. The crimson blade was heavy but very powerful. Ryder could feel power surge through him when he activated the red blade. Confidence built up inside of him. He could feel it swell up deep within himself. Ryder performed the same combo that he did with the purple blade. He noticed that his attacks were slower because of the heavier blade. However, these attacks would be stronger due to its weight as well. He deactivated his lightsaber proudly as he held his new weapon in his hand. Ryder put the lightsaber on his hilt and walked toward his master's room.

"I'm finished, Master. I have finished constructing my lightsaber." Ryder pulled his lightsaber from his hilt and held it in front of him. "By switching around the crystals, I can choose two different colors for the blade: purple and red." He ignited his blade and the red light filled the room.

"Ahhhh, so this is your red lightsaber." Korvin reached out for the hilt and grabbed it. He held it out in front and swung it a few times. "Heavy, yet powerful. Embrace this power as you use it, for it will give you great strength. This is truly a weapon of the Sith. This is what I meant by the two crystals will try and sway you a certain way. Let me see the other color form." He gave Ryder back the hilt, so that he could readjust the crystals within it.

He ignited the blade once again. This time, a beautiful, purple color filled the room. Master Korvin reached for the hilt again to examine this blade. He held it for a second and complimented Ryder saying, "I like the hilt design a lot. It reminds me of your dad's old one as it has the same spike design that his had. The purple blade is a lot lighter and focused than the red blade. This one is more refined. A good strong blade. One that does not push for power and strength but unity with the force." Master Korvin looked up at Ryder with a serious expression.

"However, the more you use only one of the colors, the more it will sway you to do the actions it desired. For example, say you use the red blade a lot more than the purple blade. You will begin to rely on the power, aggression, and confidence it gives you, instead of relying on your training and judgement." Master Korvin deactivated the lightsaber and handed it back to Ryder.

"Good, now it is time to test your blade." Ryder looked surprised because he didn't even know his master had a lightsaber anymore. "Stop standing there and get to the training room. It's time that you really learn how to fight."

They get into the training room, and Ryder stands on the far end with his hilt in hand waiting for his master to come in. Master Korvin walks in with two lightsabers in hand, and his battle armor strapped on. This included his mask as well. He stood still, in place and ignited one of his lightsabers. It was purple too.

"Since we are in a confined space, no retreating. You can only move your feet to perform attacks and counters or defensive steps," explained Korvin.

Ryder ignited his purple lightsaber with a smile and held it firmly with two hands by his side. He dashed toward his master effectively using form five's aggressive attacks. Every strike was blocked perfectly as he tried to analyze his master for an opening or weakness. His master then side stepped and began his assault. He was using the standard form one fighting technique, but it was strong and fast.

"How are his attacks this strong when he's only using one hand and the most basic fighting form," thought Ryder.

The attacks forced Ryder to start using the defensive, form three technique for the rest of the sparing session. He was only able to get a few counters in when his master purposefully slowed down his own attacks. Ryder's wet hair flung sweat everywhere with each step as he was gasping for air at this point.

About forty-five seconds into the duel, Master Korvin disarmed Ryder effortlessly as Ryder fell to his knees. With Korvin's red lightsaber at Ryder's throat he said, "It's over. You'd be dead right now. You need to work on your speed and power with the blade, and most importantly, you must work on your fighting endurance. Your fighting forms look good, but they can always be polished too."

Master Korvin stretched out his arm and helped Ryder get back to his feet. "Since the red blade is heavier, try training with the red one to improve your strength when fighting. It will help your speed and strength simultaneously."

Ryder could barely speak he was so tired. "Yes… My master." He stood up tall, turned off his lightsaber, and he put his hands over his head.

Ryder could really tell the difference in his two lightsaber colors. The purple blade was light and swift, but with his current strength, the attacks hardly had any power to them. With a red blade, his attacks would be more straight forward and powerful than his purple blade fighting style, but his speed and strength would both improve.

After he took off his mask, Korvin said, "Sit down my apprentice. For now on, we will train every day, 3 times a day, for 2 hours each. Our first session will be at six in the morning. The second session will take place at twelve noon. Lastly, the third session will begin at five in the afternoon. You will hone your skills against me, so that you will be able to start your missions as soon as you can. When you finish each session, I want you to start on your Force training right away. Start this now, and don't worry, R2 will provide you with food, water, and vitamin tablets." Ryder nodded in response, saying that he understood.

Korvin knew that this was a hefty load to place on Ryder, but it was necessary for his future survival. He had a lot of things on his mind at the time; that is why he did not waste time in Ryder's first training session.

He began walking back to his room when he felt a strong power explode far away. He stopped in his track in the middle of the main hold and heard Ryder call out to him, "Master, is there something wrong?"

Ryder had never seen his master look so worried before. "No, get back to your training. We will talk in the morning." Ryder turned and sat down to meditate, focusing on his training.


	7. Chapter 6: Shark Frenzy

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters, names, or anything in this story. It's a FanFiction.

**Chapter 6: New General and Teacher**

_It had been a year and three months since Dr. Rogers completed his own Roxy Classifier, and the US had been recruiting young adults, around eighteen years old and older, to enter their Special Forces branch of the military. About ninety-five percent of the potential recruits were excited about learning their new-found powers, but the other five percent wanted nothing to do with the military. The ones that refused their offer were sent a letter every three months that told them that are still welcome if they regret their decision._

"On the three-month anniversary of the United States testing their first Iridium Hydrogen Bomb on an asteroid in space, we celebrate the departure of ISIS from this great planet. Iridium, if you don't know, is a rare element that is only found on the planet, Sola Prima in the Newk Belt. Within three weeks of the test, the ISIS Empire left the Middle East and Earth to go inhabit one of the other planets in our solar system. Eight commercial cruisers left their home base in Baghdad, Iraq this morning and headed straight towards deep space, according to NASA. After three short months, Earth is safe for the time being, but can the continents unify to defeat or even defend against ISIS?"

After the final sentence of the newscaster, President Reed turned off the television. With their alliance with Dxun, President Reed was able to acquire some of their Iridium for a considerable amount of money. With ISIS off Earth, the US was able to focus their efforts on training their new generation of soldiers.

"Okay, Zakee good work! Now, do it again but make it 5 clones!" General Hall's voice ran loud and clear throughout the entire training grounds. Zakee's face tightened as he focused harder. Veins popped out of his neck and forehead making his face turn a reddish purple.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Suddenly, four clouds *poofed* into existence as four exact copies of Zakee appeared. All of them were tall, dark, and chiseled just like their original.

"I see you can only produce four right now, Zakee. That's fine. Go ahead and keep practicing your shuriken throws." The general was watching over a group of about fifteen seventeen year olds that Dr. Rogers had discovered using his machine that he saw in his dream.

It had been a year since the day Dr. Rogers had built their own Roxy Classifier and about four hundred other people had their powers drawn out because of it. Ever since that day, everything changed. Life was now exciting because of the opportunity to learn about special powers that were hidden deep within you.

Word had gotten out that the ISIS Empire had left the Middle East on a large, commercial cruisers the length of three football fields. They hadn't attacked the US since they left, and they do not know that they have made their own Roxy Classifier. The United States has made progress to create a world-wide council of leaders that incorporate the head of each continent. So far, only North America and Europe want to create this council.

Only the United States has the blueprints for a Roxy, and if all the continents decide to join this allegiance, the US would send blueprints to every continent leader. The only problem the other countries have with this idea is the fact that it will become easier for one person, who had acquired an incredible power, to assume control of the planet. A reasonable concern, but with the ISIS Empire as big as it is, is there really another way?

General Hall was put in charge of the training academy that is in Area 51, Nevada where the recruits trained their powers. Since the program is in its beginning stages, they only had a hotel for residence, and the training area was just anywhere outside. The hotel had ten floors with thirty rooms on each floor. Each room also had two beds. So, the hotel has 600 beds in all, ten classrooms that were originally conference halls, a large cafeteria, and a gym that could fit at least five basketball courts (the government added this on).

The government supplied the training equipment and dummies for targets, but a lot of the training was on your own since there was not much experience for teaching.

"General Hall oversees our new program here, and he's very good at it too."

General Hall could hear Dr. Rogers' voice about thirty yards away. 'Who was that he was talking to,' he thought? The man had a brown robe wrapped around himself and a trimmed white beard.

"Ah, General Hall, I've been looking everywhere for you," said Dr. Rogers. "This is Nasha Rodan. He claims to be a Jounin ninja from a foreign planet that has come to escape some council. He said he has news." Rodan nodded his head as to agree with Dr. Rogers.

"Alrighty then, follow me." General Hall led them out of the training grounds and into the hotel.

Zakee never liked practicing his shuriken throws that much; it got too boring. He could hit the target that was on the dummies chest eight times out of ten. However, knowing that it wasn't perfect is what motivated him to do better. A whole year had gone by since he had seen his best friend, Ryder. A note had been left by him saying that he joined the military but there was no records of him even enlisting. However, there was one thing he knew that Ryder was doing: working his ass off and that was truly why Zakee worked so hard during training hours. He did not want to be left in the dust by his spontaneous friend.

This made Zakee think outside of the box with a lot of his ninja techniques. Zakee's wrists were wrapped up and a cloth with a weird symbol was drawn onto it. This was a summoning symbol that summoned five shurikens per summoning. Having that on his wrists allowed quick attacks that surprised his opponents and could give him an edge in combat. He also had a katana that he could infuse with chakra, so the blade would be stronger.

One thing that Zakee had started reaching a lot more of was fuinjutsu; the type of jutsu that sealed objects, living things, chakra, and many other things. Zakee had studied and researched for countless hours when he found a very special technique not used by many. It was the teleportation seal. All he had to do was write down the seal on an object, and then activate the seal using his chakra to teleport to it. The symbol for this jutsu was the hardest thing about the jutsu. It had specific turns, ins and outs, and protrusions that were hard to learn and draw.

"Hey Zakee! Do you mind helping me out really quick?" Clayton Rudd is Zakee's roommate here and is also a ninja. He specializes in strategy and the shadow jutsus along with water jutsus. Zakee gave a quick nod of reassurance that he'd help.

"Awesome! I need help with my Shadow Possession Jutsu. I'm trying to make my hold stronger, so can I possess you while you try to break free?" This was a common request from Clayton since Zakee happened to be the strongest ninja at the academy.

"Sure," he chuckled, "give it your best shot!"

Clayton jumped back with a smirk and yelled, "Shadow Possession Jutsu!"

A long shadow bolted out from Clayton's own and connected to Zakee's shadow. "Okay, go ahead and try to escape it!"

Zakee used all his strength to try and escape the grasp of Clayton's shadow. After about two minutes of struggling, Zakee broke free from Clayton's hold on him. "That was a lot better than last time, Clayton. It actually took me some time to get out of it. The longer you can hold a shadow, the more powerful your jutsu will become. Remember that too!" Clayton was sweating and panting but gave him a thumb up as he turned and walked back to his area.

Zakee began walking towards the academy to go grab a textbook on wind style jutsu. He knew little to none on this topic, so in order to learn more jutsus he wanted to read a lot of those books.

He went up to the librarian and asked if any wind jutsu books were available. She pointed him to a white book on a nearby shelf. He walked over to it and pulled it out. The cover was fairly peaceful. It was solid white with gold lines that ended up picturing a bird in mid-flight. with a giant bird on the cover.

Flipping the pages, Zakee saw a cool jutsu that allowed the user to push air out of their palms. "Hmmmm… Gale Palm seems like an effective jutsu," said Zakee in a whisper. So, he read the topic and tried to learn everything it said from the hand seals to the weaknesses of it. He wanted to learn a jutsu that let him control air currents, but that challenge would have to wait until he was a little bit more experienced.

"Zakee! General Hall is looking for you!" said Tommy as he ran into the library.

"Shhhhhhhhhhh! This is a library!" scolded the librarian as Tommy sprinted towards the hallway out of fear.

"Sorry," said Zakee as he apologized to her for his long-time friend, Tommy. "What does he want from me?" asked Zakee.

"I'm not sure, but he's waiting at the training grounds with that visitor." He was wondering what that robed man was doing here ever since he stepped foot on the grounds.

"Okay, thanks Tommy," said Zakee.

They began walking back to the training grounds together, and Zakee said, "How's your sword practice coming along?"

"It's going fine. I'm only use the dagger as it is right now. For some reason, I can't Djinn equip just yet." Tommy looked a looked a little disappointed in himself. He was tall, about 6 feet 3 inches and a little skinny, but boy could he fight. This guy would never give up and always put his body on the line.

"Ah don't beat yourself up over it. You'll get there. I mean we've only been training for four months. I'll see you later though!" They had just pulled up on the General and the visitor when the two boys split up.

"Yes, General?" Zakee stood at attention with both hands by his side thinking what he was about to ask him.

"Zakee, this is Nasha Rodan. He's a Jounin ninja that came from Corrupan, in the Ragnos sector. He said that he could feel a massive amount of energy swelling over here and had to check it out. We've talked to him and don't believe that he's a threat, so we've agreed to let him help us," explained General Hall. Rodan smiled and nodded.

"Since he's a ninja like you, he will train you, and you will learn all that you can. This is a great opportunity for you to become stronger and learn a lot more." Nasha Rodan just stood there nodding as the general spoke.

"Everything he says is correct. I came from a planet that is just on the other side of that sun." Rodan pointed to one of the two suns.

"Like he said, I'm a Jounin ninja, and I'm just going to go ahead and jump into things. My nature affinities are wind, water, and earth style. Along with jutsu from those categories I will teach you high class techniques in other forms of jutsu, such as: genjutsu, fuinjutsu, taijutsu, and kenjutsu. The training will not be easy at all, and since you have the most experience, you will be my main student. So, how about it? Do you want me to teach you?"

Zakee didn't even have to think twice about this decision. "Of course! Yes sir!"

General Hall was pleased with how excited Zakee seemed and said, "Well good because there wasn't much of a choice for you," while he gave a quick laugh. "Go ahead and get back to training, Zakee. Now, Nasha please follow me to your room." The two started to walk back to the hotel as Nasha Rodan looked back over his shoulder as if he was analyzing Zakee. He did not care in the slightest as he nodded towards Rodan and walked to where the other ninja were training.

"Guys! We finally have a teacher!" Zakee yelled out so everyone could hear over the noise of their metal weapons hitting each other. All the other ninjas knew he wasn't lying so a smile appeared on all their faces. A few of them high-fived each other.

"This being said, we are going to train a lot harder so no complaining! This is all to become stronger and protect this country. He said he specializes in wind, earth, and water jutsu, so if you do too, you're in luck. Now, let's get to work!" He grinned when he finished this and went back to his training.

He raised his right index finger and middle finger in front of his chest followed by his left hand holding up the same two fingers horizontally behind his right hand and said, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Four copies of Zakee appeared right next to him, and they started throwing their shuriken at logs standing upright, but they weren't on target. Suddenly, Zakee, whose arms were out and above his head, pulled his arms across his body, and the shuriken changed directions and hit the logs. Since shadow clones transfer their knowledge to their original, Zakee mastered this technique quickly after practicing it for the past few weeks.

After two and a half hours of settling in and talking training programs with General Hall, Nasha Rodan walked over to where Zakee was training.

"So, you're working on your shuriken throws. I like how you use your chakra to change the directions of them," Rodan said.

"Yeah, I was training with Clayton when he dodged my shuriken. That made me think of a way to improve my shuriken, so I either infuse chakra into them or attached wires to them," explained Zakee.

Nasha examined Zakee and asked, "Would you like to learn some other jutsu instead?"

Zakee's face lit up and responded, "Yes!" at once.

"If I teach you jutsu, you have to start calling me Sensei Rodan." Zakee did not mind this and wanted to learn jutsu right away.

"Of course, Sensei," said Zakee walking over to his sensei.

"Good, now let's go over to the water and begin."

The two walked over to a nearby lake.

"The first jutsu that I will teach you will come in handy often. It's called the Hidden Mist Technique. It will create a thick fog that shields you from the sight of everything except the Byakugan. I'll show you." Sensei Rodan did a set of hand seals and then said, "Hidden Mist Jutsu!"

A thick fog rolled in from the lake front and suddenly, and he could see nothing. Zakee could feel the fog go into his lungs with every breathe he took. Next thing he knew, Sensei Rodan was at his side with a kunai at his neck.

"This is the power of the hidden mist technique; it's very useful for an assassination attempt or against many opponents." The sensei dispelled the mist and jolted towards Zakee quickly making hand seals.

"Water Prison Jutsu!" yelled Sensei Rodan. A thick, breathable water surrounded Zakee. He looked at Sensei and tried to move towards him, but could only manage to lift his arm in the direction of Sensei Rodan.

"Is this all that you've got Zakee? You've got to have something more than this…Or, should I just bring Clayton over here. I'm sure he would be able to escape this jutsu in a matter of seconds knowing how smart he is." Sensei Rodan was trying to push Zakee, but he knew that he was ignoring him because his eyes were shut.

"Wind Style: Gale Palm!" Zakee's arm was aimed in the perfect direction and made a direct hit on his sensei that sent him flying back ten yards. Zakee was in awe that his attacked worked; his grin was as big as the moon.

Looking on from behind a nearby boulder, Sensei Rodan was very intrigued. 'Making it seem like he was trying to escape, he directed his jutsu towards my water clone. Clever kid,' he thought.

Zakee began to walk up to Sensei Rodan, but stopped a few steps away.

Sensei Rodan and his clothes had turned blue with ripples going across his clothes and skin. Suddenly, Sensei Rodan's body had burst into water.

'No! It's a Water Clone,' thought Zakee.

"Well done Zakee," Rodan applauded as he walked out from behind a nearby boulder. "I didn't know that you can use Wind Release?"

Zakee stood up straight and said, "I saw a book on Wind Release and saw that jutsu in it. My affinities are in water and wind release."

"Well you're in luck because I have a lot of ninjutsu scrolls. Come over here and sit down." Sensei Rodan pointed towards a wooden picnic table and walked towards it. Zakee walked over and sat on one the other side of the table.

Sensei Rodan pulled out a big scroll and rolled it out on the table. Both ends rolled off the table were barely off the ground. Sensei Rodan made a hand sign with on hand and said, "Release!"

A white cloud of smoke appeared and when it dispersed, a mound of scrolls and books appeared on top of the long scroll. Zakee looked up with a grill of thrill and excitement.

"Can I go to the library and read these?" Zakee really wanted to read these scrolls. He knew that those would have the jutsus he wanted to try.

"Sure, go ahead. Don't try any in there!" Zakee sealed the books and scrolls back into the larger scroll and headed to the library with an extra pep in his step.

Sensei Rodan walked over to the other shinobis (ninjas) and gathered them together. "My name is Nasha Rodan. I am your new sensei I have a few things I have to tell you."

He pulled out a scroll and rolled it on the ground. All the ninjas gathered around just when Sensei Rodan yelled "Release!" Stacks of five books appeared, and all of them had a label of their respected element on them.

"I want you to take a book from the stack of what your affinity element is, and if you have two take the other book as well. Now, go ahead and grab a book." Sensei Rodan looked on with a smile as everyone began rushing to the books.

Everyone grabbed a book or two according to their own affinities. Clayton grabbed a Fire Release book and an Earth Release book. Luca grabbed a Lightning Release book and walked up to Sensei Rodan along with Clayton.

They tapped him on the shoulder and said that they has an element not out there. Clayton told him, "Shadow Release," and Luca told him, "Ice Release." The Sensei had a surprised and happy face as he pulled out two scrolls and handed it to them.

"Study these! These are hard kekkei genkai learn and even harder to master. They have some tricky ones in there, so go ahead and start studying them."

"Yes, Sensei." Luca smiled as he and Clayton walked out and headed to the either the library or their dorms to read their books. The two walked into the library to study their books.

"Do you see Zakee?" Clayton asked Luca.

"No, I don't think he's in here. He might be in his room." Luca shrugged and walked over to a table with Clayton following.

Three days pasted, and all that the students were doing was reading the book(s) they got from Sensei Rodan.

Luca and Clayton were still in the library reading their books with Monster cans on the table. Tommy walked in with a small dagger on his belt. It has a gold hilt with a strange symbol on the blade.

He walked over towards Clayton and Luca and says, "Hey guys, what's up?"

"We've been here for basically three days reading and studying these books," said Luca. "They have new jutsu and techniques that we can learn," continued Clayton.

"Awesome, have either of y'all seen Zakee lately?" asked Tommy.

"No, we went back and knocked on his door. He didn't answer, so we walked in. He wasn't in there," explained Luca. "I bet he's out practicing his jutsus somewhere around here."

Tommy nodded in agreement and turned as he walked back towards the door. "Okay, I'll see you guys later!" yelled Tommy just as he remembered he was in the library. The librarian gave him a death glare, so Tommy ran out and towards the training grounds.

It was a room full of a thick fog. It was still… Calm.

*Drip… Drip*

The sound of water dropping from the ceiling echoed throughout the entire room. Towards the middle of the room was a giant pool with a figure wearing dark clothing hunched over. He stood up and performed a long series of hand seals and yelled, "Water Style: Water Shark Bullet!"

Five average-sized sharks made of water formed above the pool and launched themselves towards a wall made of steel. The same figure jumped backwards doing back handsprings ending with a slide on the water and a single hand sign.

Spinning spears made of water came out of the water, and shot off in the same direction the shark went once they were three feet out. The spears hit the same area of the wall and another explosion of water and force collided. The figured stood up and looked at the wall. There wasn't a single scratch on it.

"Zakee! Do it again! If you can't even scratch a wall, how the hell are you going to protect this planet?!" Sensei Rodan's voice echoed in the water training facility. Zakee took a deep breath and began his hand seals again.


	8. Chapter 7: Battle for the Mountain

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters, names, or anything in this story. It's a FanFiction.

* * *

**Chapter 7: Battle for the Mountain**

Eight months have passed since the mass exodus of the ISIS Empire (5 months between this and the last chapter). It was four in the morning, Ryder sat up in his bed. He turned towards his calendar that he bought and x'ed through the date, September 4th. It had been a year and five months since he had seen his dad, friends, his house, and so much more. He missed a lot of it and wondered what all his friends were doing right then. He pushed those thoughts away as he rolled out of bed and put on just his training pants and shinobi sandals.

Ryder walked to the training room and sat Indian style on the ground. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes to meditate. R2 rolled in and made a series of clicks and whistles quietly so that he did not wake up Master Korvin. "Sure, that would be great, R2. Make sure you put pepper in the eggs." Ryder closed his eyes again and relaxed.

Ryder had gone on many missions within the past eight months, and his improvement with his skills showed. Master Korvin made sure that Ryder had mastered one skill before he moved onto another.

Since the two of them weren't affiliated with any planet, many of the missions Ryder was sent on were assassination missions on the ISIS Empire and other tyrannical governments. That was a condition that Ryder set up when they first started missions.

One mission Ryder was hired for was on Earth. This was the only mission that he regretted doing. The contract said that there was a small academy in Oregon, United States that was disguised as an academy for a faction of ISIS. Ryder was to go there and whittle their numbers down to a minimal. He was told that there were jedi, ninjas, and other powerful people there, so he had to be careful.

Ryder took a smaller ship down to the surface and crept up to the academy. The academy was a large hall with smaller buildings behind it. It was deeply submerged into the depths of a densely populated forest.

Wearing a white face shield, black pants, shirt, and shinobi sandals, the gray flak jacket, and gray forearm protectors. He called this his 'battle uniform'. He clipped his lightsaber to his belt and studied the building for any entrances. Ryder noticed a window on the wall of the main hall that was about thirty feet off the ground.

Using the Force, Ryder jumped up and grabbed the window ledge and pulled himself up very quietly. Perched on the ledge, Ryder saw about twenty students around the age of twenty and two others that looked like teachers.

"Initiating mission," whispered Ryder into his communicator.

As he said that, a student from down below heard him, most likely because of her powers, and warned everyone of an intruder. "Intruder up above," she yelled!

'Shit,' thought Ryder. He blew his cover.

Ryder grabbed, activated his red lightsaber, then jumped down to where the students were preparing to attack. Some had swords, some had kunai, and others were prepared to use their fists or whatever power they had.

Glancing around to gauge his opponents, Ryder sized them up from potentially the most dangerous to the weaklings. Ryder dashed at this one girl who was smaller in stature. She swung at him with her sword, but he slid on the ground to dodge it. Getting up smoothly, Ryder quickly sliced her back and kicked her against a nearby wall.

Ryder looked up to see a giant fireball heading towards him. He leaped to his side and saw who was attacking him. Using the Force, Ryder levitated the girl he just attacked and flung her at the man breathing fire.

A group of six people rushed Ryder with their swords ready to attack. They swung coordinately with one another, but Ryder blocked each attack fluidly. However, Ryder noticed that their swords weren't being cut by his lightsaber. 'They must be Shinigami,' he thought.

After blocking a multitude of combos, Ryder coated his lightsaber in lightning and swung his lightsaber around in a circle knocking the six back onto the ground at least fifteen yards away.

Jumping in from nearby stairs, a male around the age of twenty, swung at Ryder with a sword larger than a normal katana. Ryder dodged the attack easily, but when the sword hit the ground, it created a crater with a small explosion.

The man then dashed Ryder and engaged in a sword fight. Lightsaber versus sword. Just like a few previous swords, Ryder's lightsaber didn't slice through his sword. After blocking a few combos from his opponents, Ryder locked blades with him. Staring down on his opponents, in one fell swoop, Ryder flipped his lightsaber around to the other side of the opponent's sword and sliced down. His enemy's hands were now cut off, he was on his knees.

Ryder looked up to a man than was at the top of the stairs dressed in a military uniform. Without breaking eye contact, Ryder lifted the man he just fought into the air with one hand using the Force to choke him as well. With his other hand, Ryder threw his lightsaber through his opponent's chest with the Force.

In fear and anger, the older man began to yell as his power began building up. A white aura suddenly surrounded him as a gust of wind shot from his body in every direction.

This didn't faze Ryder. He had seen this a few times before. "Time to bring this whole place down," he muttered to himself.

Widening his stance and reaching his arms out to his side, Ryder began to pull on the stone columns with the Force. Slowly, rocks chipped away from the columns and remained suspended in the air.

The man at the top of the stairs felt a heavy pressure begin to build up in that room. He knew that no matter what, those columns were coming down. 'Incredible,' he thought. 'Who the hell is this guy?!'

He turned around and ran to gather all his other students. He had to save them all and make sure that no one was in the building when it collapsed.

A few moments after the man left, Ryder smiled and swung his arms across his chest causing all but two columns to crumble. All the debris flew to the opposite side of the room that they were on. Rocks from the ceiling began to fall, so Ryder ran and jumped onto the ledge that he entered through.

He looked back at the two remaining pillars. Gathering the Force in one hand, he sent a pulse of Force push at the two and completely leveled them. As those two fell, the whole ceiling and subsequently the base began to fall as well.

Companies, governments, and rebels on many of the planets hired them to help their armies or to assassinate a specific person. Ryder had told Korvin that he got to choose if they were to take the contract or not, so that he knew he wasn't killing an innocent person.

A few hours passed and Ryder was wet with sweat from image training, so he walked to his room and took a shower. After getting out of the shower, Ryder threw on khaki shorts, a blue shirt that had a small, extended collar, and tennis shoes.

He walked into the main where R2 had put his plate of food on the table. R2 was working on the mach-speed engine in the back making a lot of noise, and you could hear his sarcastic whistles showing his displeasure and annoyance occasionally.

Ryder finished eating and walked to the cockpit to fly the ship. He had gotten very good at it too. There were missions where he had to evade enemy fighters and navigate throughout an asteroid belt, and he has never _badly_ damaged the ship.

R2 strolled up and sat next to Ryder. "Today is the day of our biggest mission yet, R2. We are teaming up with a special team sent from America to help us out. They have different kinds of powers too. Master says they don't have much experience though."

Their mission is to land on the planet Xeno and help an American task force eliminate everyone in an ISIS hideout there. They were only a few hours out, when they received a call.

"Come in 501-Ghost. Repeat. Come in 501-Ghost."

Ryder grabbed the com and replied with, "Who's asking?" A few moments passed until the com answered.

"This is 1138-Orion."

Ryder looked at R2 and said, "Well here we go." He grabbed the com and said, "You've got the Ghost. This is X. What are your coordinates?"

A static came through followed with a, "Longitude 45.21 and Latitude of 56.98."

Ryder said back, "I shall be there in about an hour."

The conversation ended with, "10-4 Roger. Orion out."

Ryder put the Ghost on full throttle and flew towards the coordinates. An hour passed, and he was pulling up to the rendezvous. He landed then went to his room to change clothes. Ryder put on khaki, Jedi, battle pants. A dark brown long sleeve shirt with a tan sleeve that covered his left arm. He wore a white tabard that did not connect at the waist. Instead, it was tied to his waist with a brown leather belt that wrapped around him.

He walked out into the main hold to get R2. Master Korvin was standing there waiting for him. "Here, put this in your ear. It's our com link for each other. And don't forget this." Master Korvin reached out his hand and gave him his mask. "Make sure it doesn't break out there. And look, may the Force be with you." Ryder gave him a nod and put the mask on his face. Raised his head then put a light brown hood over his black mask with a red line.

The exit ramp lowered, and Ryder and R2 walked out and towards a tree. He sat down with his back against the truck and watched as the Ghost flew into space.

"Can you hear me?"

Ryder could hear his Master's voice loud and clear. "Loud and clear, Bossman," replied Ryder.

"Don't… Ever… Call me that again," said Korvin with a little chuckle. "Just wait there for the Americans to come."

Ryder said, "Alright, Master." He sat up and used this time to meditate, and R2 just sat and waited. He closed his eyes and began image battle training.

About fifteen minutes passed until he could feel three people wander close by. They walked into the clearing in the woods and stood in the middle. One had black pants identical to his own with a white long-sleeve shirt. He had a pouch clipped around his thigh and one on his belt behind his back. Another had on a military uniform. He was in the middle, so he was the important one, he deduced. The one on the far side wore sandals and short khaki pants that barely went past his knees. He wore a blue shirt with a vest over it with pouches all over. He was black and had a katana on the back of his waist.

"You're late."

The three turned towards Ryder, and the one in the middle said, "We apologize. We had a few things that needed to be taken care of before we came. I am General Price." He pointed to the one in the long white sleeves and says, "This is one of our finest men, Ridley." He looked up at Ryder and gives him a nod. Ryder thought, 'Ah, friendly,' as Ridley lowered his head.

"And this right here is our top Jounin, Zakee."

He raised his hand, gave a wave and said, "Hey." Then he lowered his hand.

Ryder was shocked and couldn't say anything and was just staring at Zakee. He couldn't believe that Zakee, his best friend, was one of their best men and that he was in the army! Ryder just gave him an awkward wave back.

"Alright," said the General. "Let's go to the campsite."

Ryder and R2 followed the three throughout the forest for about thirty minutes until they came upon a clearing with tents set up and a fire in the middle.

General Price led the three into a large tent that had a map in the middle with figures on top. About ten people surrounded the table. Ryder assumed that the ones here were the leaders and the generals.

"Here is where the ISIS hideout is located. X, do you have the schematics?" Ryder walked to an open area and R2 followed. R2 activated a hologram that he had stored within and it gave the layout of the hideout.

"From analyzing the schematics, I think the best entry point is from this side of the mountain. Someone will have to blow a hole in the side of the mountain so we can go in. The forest will provide us with cover and a place to hide our escape. I was told that y'all have someone that can get through the mountain?"

A few chuckles went around the table. A man about 5'10" and two hundred pounds raised his hand and said, "I can get us through it."

General Price turned towards Ryder and said, "He's a Saiyan, they're quite powerful."

Ryder stared at the General and said coldly, "I've heard." He turned back to the schematics and continued. "However, we must wait for the optimal time, and according to my intel, the majority of the men, here," Ryder pointed to the opening of the cave where there were dots to symbolize ISIS troops. "They go out on their scouting checks at the same time. That time is at seventeen-hundred. If we do it then, we will be able to plant the bombs here in the back and leave out the same hole. Any questions?" No one raised their hand, and everyone nodded in agreement.

The General looked at everyone and said, "Okay, I want squads one and two going in with X, and squads three and four outside ready for back up. Now, go get your supplies and be ready."

As everyone was getting their gear, Ryder walked over to R2 who was near the fire. "You got everything, buddy?" R2 gave a few beeps in agreement with Ryder. He sat next to the fire and saw a few people walk up to him.

Zakee led the way and said, "We wanted to introduce ourselves because, well we're the ones you'll be fighting with. I'm Zakee, and I'm a ninja that uses water and wind jutsu." Everyone began to say their names and powers. Luckily for Ryder, he had a good memory. In the order of people who introduced themselves, first, he met: Zakee the ninja, Clayton another ninja, Ridley a devil fruit eater, Jackson a saiyan, Taylor a ghoul, Pierce an alchemist, and Chad a Shinigami.

"It's good to meet all you." Ryder said back. "I'm X, a Jedi, and this here, is R2." He pointed to his friendly astromech droid that made a beep and whistle. "I'll let you get back to what you were doing."

He turned and walked away and said "See ya!" as he threw a wave over his shoulder. It was like meeting his best friend again and all he could do was smile.

"I need squads one through four along with squad gold and X to the battle tent," echoed out of the speaker systems.

Ryder remembered that General Price had given him the name Gold Leader. He grabbed his lightsaber and walked to the tent with R2. It was a lot more crowed than earlier. He made it to the front when he heard, "Okay, the plan is that Jackson and his squad blow a hole in through the side of the mountain. At that moment Gold Leader will lead squads one and two through the hole and plant the explosives. Squads three and four will provide support from the outside in case the enemy tries to attack. Are there any questions?" No one said a word.

"Alright men! To your stations and get ready for battle! I need Gold Team to come up to the front!" Four men dressed in a white uniform with a gold sleeve came to the front. "This is your squad X. This is Radak. He has a parasite. This is Clayton, and he is a ninja with shadow, fire, and earth abilities. He is also a top tier strategist. This one is Pierce, and he is an alchemist. Lastly, this is Guy Lightfoot, a master swordsman."

All of them had on masks that resembled an animal. Ryder liked how they looked and said, "Okay, let's go boys!"

Ryder led the group of five in-front of the other squads and began the march through the forest towards the mountain.

It was an hour march, so Clayton tried to make small talk with Ryder on the way there. "So, where are you from, X?" Ryder did not respond and just kept walking.

"Hmmm, why are you called X?"

Ryder took a deep sigh and said, "You realize that I'm a mercenary, and usually when someone founds out the kind of information that you're asking, I kill them, right?" Ryder turned his head back to the front and kept walking. The thing that Ryder did not know was that Clayton had a very high IQ and was testing his reactions and responses.

'Hmmmm,' thought Clayton. 'What an interesting guy.'

They kept walking towards the base of the mountain when Ryder threw a fist in the sky. Everyone behind him stopped. He did three fist pumps to initiate the first stage of the attack. Suddenly, a girl named, Sarah, turned into the Pokémon, Pidgey and flew to the front of the base. She looked around and saw that it was barren, so she returned to Ryder. She landed and morphed back into herself. "No one is there right now. Now would be the optimal time to attack."

Ryder paused. "Feel the Force, does it seem right to strike right now. Search for the answer." It was his master in his com piece, and Ryder did as he was instructed.

"Let's begin," he finally said. Jackson had a smile on his face as he flew into the air.

He looked at the targeted spot on the mountain, put his palms together by his head. Threw his hands in front of himself and yelled, "Gatlick Gun!" A purple beam shot from his hands and collided with the side of the mountain busting a large hole in the side.

"Let's go!" shouted Ryder as he ran up to the whole in the side of the mountain. Once he got in, Ryder began searching for places to place the bombs.

"Try and put the explosives on the columns that support this cave!" Squads one, two, and gold filled the cave and began to plant the bombs.

'This doesn't feel right,' Ryder thought. 'There should at least be a few of them in here, but its barren.' Ryder looked around and the answer donned on him.

"It's a trap," he yelled! "They knew we were coming!"

Suddenly, ISIS members started coming into the front of their base shooting their laser guns. In the back of the cave, one of the walls exploded towards them, and another group of ISIS soldiers flooded into the back of the cave.

"We're surrounded," muttered Ryder. He ignited his red lightsaber that produced a red aura that illuminated his surroundings. To his left and right, lasers were flying past him. He deflected every laser that came his way as they found their way back to the original shooter. Behind the soldiers with guns, a large number of unarmed soldiers swarmed in from the front of the base.

Fighting off the soldiers that came in through the back of the cave, Ryder swung and sliced his lightsaber into the enemies that got close to him. As he ran towards the hole, he heard a voice, "Ice Style: Snow Storm Swallows!"

Ice in the shape of birds began flying in his direction. One after another flew by him grazing off pieces of his robe. Each sliced caused a chill of frost to coat the surrounding fabric that eventually thawed out.

Using the force, Ryder jumped, twisted, and proceeded to dodge the incoming attacks with slight ease; however, the ice birds continued to attack him. Out of the corner of his eye, Ryder saw a ninja jump in-front of him taking the attack coming his way. A giant bird that was made of ice followed Ryder as he backtracked his steps. He jumped in the air to dodge the sweeping attacking of the swallows, but a bigger ice bird clipped Ryder as he twisted and turned in the air.

A ninja slowly walked towards Ryder performing a series of hand seals and said, "Chidori." Suddenly, lightning appeared around his hand and a sound of a thousand birds chirping could be heard by those close to him. The enemy rushed towards Ryder with his hand extended in front of him. Out of nowhere, a pillar of earth flew past Ryder and knocked the enemy unconscious and on his back.

"Come on, X! We've got to get the explosives placed," yelled Pierce! He was riding past Ryder as he was using his alchemy to control the earth beneath him.

"Damnit, I can't let my guard down around these guys," said Ryder as he stood up and brushed the dirt off his shoulder. He continued running towards the enemy with his red lightsaber in hand deflecting incoming jutsu and lasers.

Gold Squad was holding their own while the other squads were struggling. Enemy and ally bodies hit the floor as a battle of superpowers encompassed the cave.

On the right of Ryder was the main opening of the hideout, and on the left, was the back of the hideout that had a large control panel.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ryder saw a green blade come out of both sides of a hilt. The wielder began to slowly walk out spinning his double-bladed lightsaber from the back of the hideout. About ten other figures walked out from behind her. They were flanked.

"I need some help over here!" yelled Ryder. He clipped his lightsaber and began walking towards the mass of enemies. He stopped and began to build up a large amount of the Force then pushed it towards his opponent. A few flew backwards, but many stood their ground as they braced for the Force push. Noticing that he had to go bigger, Ryder summoned lightning to his fingers and shot out a storm of lightning that got a few more of the enemy soldiers to fall.

"We may be in trouble, Master," Ryder whispered to his Master through his communicator. He ignited his red lightsaber and jumped towards the enemy with the double green lightsaber.

On the other side of the fight, Jake Anderson, another one of Ryder's friend, was with a squad fighting off the ISIS factions at the front of the hideout. Jake is proficient in Nen and is quite skilled in a multitude of other skills. He is intelligent, strong, perceptive, fast, and is a great hand-to-hand combatant. His special nen ability is the Bungee Gum technique that allows him to create an invisible gum that he can stick to objects.

"Taylor! Are you okay over there?" yelled Jake in the direction of the opening.

Taylor was fighting off an enemy that had invisible arms that could reach out up to nine feet. Taylor used one of his kagune and slapped his opponent into the wall.

"I'm doing fine over here! Just focus on yourself!" replied Taylor.

Jake engaged a martial artist in hand-to-hand combat. He first attacked with a barrage of punches, but the other fighter was blocking them all.

"Is that all you've got?" yelled his opponent. "You can't beat me! I am Nate Bailey, and I am going to be stronger than any other ninja before!" Nate threw his right fist towards Jake's face but stopped and kicked Jake in the side with tremendous force. Jake flew twenty yards back and fell to a knee.

"That's enough, Nate." A shadowy figure that had his arms crossed walked up in front of Nate. He opened his eyes and red eyes with black pinwheels appeared. The pressure of the presence of this opponent was incredible.

"Who are you?" asked Jake. The figure scoffed as he flexed his eyes towards Jake.

The Jedi with the green, double lightsaber swung his lightsaber towards Ryder's head, but Ryder blocked it as they locked in. Ryder was aggressively attacking making use of his form five training. The other Jedi's blocking and speed was phenomenal.

As the fight drew longer, Ryder relied more on his form two footwork and counters. The other Jedi could not find a single weakness in Ryder's techniques.

Suddenly, Ryder noticed a stray fire blasts headed towards Zakee. He dropped to the ground and swiped out his opponent's legs from beneath him. Quickly, he turned towards Zakee and used the Force to move the incoming fireballs, saving him from the blaze.

Zakee heard the explosion behind him and turned to see Ryder using the force to deflect a lot of fire balls that would be hitting Zakee. He jumped out of the range of the fire balls, so that Ryder could stop and get back to fighting.

Ryder kicked the Jedi into a nearby wall then turned to the ninja that was firing off fire balls. "You shouldn't have done that," said Ryder as his lightsaber crackled.

He kept walking towards the ninja that was throwing fireballs after fireballs. All Ryder did when walking straight towards the fireballs was move his right hand from his bottom left across his body and up. This motion sliced through the fireballs allowing Ryder to walk right through them. He reached the ISIS ninja and pointed his crimson lightsaber at him. Within a second the head of Ryder's victim was rolling on the ground.

He turned around to fight the other Jedi, but he was in a lock with Zakee and his chakra covered katana. The ISIS Jedi knew Ryder was rushing towards them, so he did a quick combo and sliced Zakee's chest then used the Force to throw him against the wall nearly killing him.

Angered, the bar on Ryder's mask lit up a bright orangish red. Ryder used the force to pick up fallen steel beam and sent lightning into the beam making it conduct electricity. He threw it at the Jedi, but the enemy Jedi was able to slice and dodge the incoming beam. However, as he finished slicing the last beam, he felt a presence beneath him. It was Ryder, crouched and looking into his targets eyes with his ignited lightsaber in the ISIS Jedi's stomach.

The last thing that soldier saw was a masked man, armored and cloaked in black, with burning red light coming from his mask. The presence of that Jedi was great enough to make him fall to his knees, but his red blade was in my stomach before my body could react to him.

Ryder looked around and saw that enemies were backing away pointing to his mask. He raised his arms and put all the Force he had into a storm of Force lightning that fried multiple enemy targets around him.

Ryder stood up straight and looked at the ongoing battle. The ISIS soldiers outnumbered the five squads, and they had fallen into their trap.

From outside the cave, a US soldier yelled, "ISIS ships have arrived and are dow deploying reinforcements!"

"Fall back!" yelled Ryder. A lot of the squad leaders looked back with a sigh of relief. There were heavy casualties and the battle was not looking good. "Squad One! Make sure you get your leader back to safety. He is over against the wall!"

Jackson flew up to Ryder and asked, "How are we going to stop them from coming after us?"

Ryder looked at him and said, "Leave that to me. Just make sure everyone gets out." Jackson nodded then led everyone else out of the cave as lasers and other attacks flew towards them. Ryder was at the back with Clayton and Taylor defending the rear troops. There were at least six hundred ISIS troop trying to get into the base to kill off the squads. There was nowhere for them to go.

Ryder ran to the control panel in the back deflecting any attack that came his way. "Damnit," he said. "This panel has been sending videos of the fight, intel on the continents of Earth, and weapon plans out to some satellite."

Taking his ignited lightsaber, Ryder thrusted it through the screens and the main console. A bright light filled the back of the room as the transmitter exploded sending scrap metal everywhere killing many of the ISIS soldiers in the process. Ryder was able to use the Force to stop any of the metal from hitting him.

Ryder dropped the metal and turned to the front of the cave. Bodies covered the ground. Too many US soldiers died. He was too careless. Ryder could feel the Force boiling within him. Hatred was the only thing in his mind.

"We're ready X! We need to get out of here!" Ryder turned towards Jackson who had noticed that the red bar on X's mask was glowing brighter now, but it was a deeper crimson. He didn't say anything because he felt as if it wasn't the time or place to do so.

Ryder said, "Ok, you go ahead and lead everyone out of here and I'll hold them off."

Jackson was tired of Ryder sounding a little cocky and said, "Look there's more than a half thousand of them. You can't stop all of them. Let us help you out."

Ryder looked into at him and said, "Get out of here before you can't."

Jackson scoffed and turned towards the whole and began to fly to it, but he stopped. "At least tell us your name so we know what to really call you."

Ryder fully turned towards Jackson and confidently said, "Revan," as he Force pushed Jackson out into the forest. Ryder looked at the all the enemies rushing him, so he jumped into the air and balled up, bringing the Force to him.

Jackson landed right next to Zakee, who had just woken up on a stretcher. They were both looking at the hole in the mountain because all they could see was a man balled up floating in the air.

Suddenly, Ryder threw out his arms and legs and yelled, "Suspend!" Everything inside the base lifted off the ground and floated. From the outside, all anyone could see were the rubble and enemy fighters floating in mid-air.

"Repulse!" he finally yelled closing his body into a ball again. A shock wave came from Ryder that set off the explosives and destroyed the inside of the hideout. Everything inside the mountain came crashing towards him and slammed into the ground. Zakee and Jackson could see the entire mountain collapse on top of Ryder, causing a giant explosion the shook the ground for miles around.

The two could not believe what they were seeing. One man just caused an entire mountain to collapse, let alone on himself.

"Wow," said Zakee. That was the only thing he could find to say. "Did he say anything to you before he told you to leave?" asked Zakee.

"He told me that his name is, Revan." Zakee looked at Jackson surprised because he knew all the legends about a man named Revan that was powerful enough level armies without a single weapon.

"I know. I know," said Jackson. "It's crazy, but I do actually think that he might be connected to the Revan we're thinking of."

Zakee looked at the collapsed mountain in astonishment. How could there be someone with such raw power in the world, he thought.

"We have bogies coming in from the right side of the mountain," yelled Sarah! "They're the soldiers that couldn't get inside the base during the fight!"

Jackson stood up and yelled to the troops, "Retreat! We can't let X's sacrifice be for nothing!" Upon hearing the orders, all the soldiers turned and ran to the base. Zakee attempted to stand up, but his lack of strength made him fall back to the ground.

"Zakee, let me handle it from here," said Jackson. Zakee nodded as he laid back down on his make-shift stretcher. Two soldiers with a red cross on their sleeve symbolizing that they were medics took Zakee away with some sort of teleportation ability.

"Squads gold and one! Stay at the back of the group to fend off attacks, but don't get too caught up where you're left behind! Let's go!"

The remaining US soldiers sprinted through the woods trying to make it back to their ships. The soldiers at the back were casting defensive jutsu, magic, and of abilities to keep the US casualties to a low. However, they weren't perfect. Fireballs, magical spells, and boulders got past the line of defense and ended up killing soldiers in retreat.

Jackson was engaged with a Z-Fighter that was well versed with hand-to-hand combat. "Do it now," yelled the enemy! Behind him, a soldier stomped the ground and made a giant rock fly up at least four feet from the ground. He kicked it sending if soaring past Jackson.

Damnit, he thought. I can't get to that.

Lesley Johnson, a long-distance communicator posted up behind a thick oak tree and began sending distress calls to their assault ship. "We need immediate pick up. I repeat, we need immediate pick up. The base and entire mountain has collapsed, but we are still outnumbered in our retreat." Static was the only thing he heard in response.

Finally, a voice came through the transmitter that said, "Roger that. We are preparing for y'all's immediate pick up. What are your coordinates?"

Praising God for a response, he said, "We're all in the woods behind the –"

The large boulder that got past Jackson destroyed the oak tree along with Lesley and anyone else behind it.

Pissed off, Jackson quickly disengaged and flew back forty yards and prepared his attack. "Use your best attack squad gold and one!" Jackson opened his arms to his side and began building up his chi for an ultimate attack. Next to him ninjas, Shinigami, wizards, devil fruit users, and many others prepared their ultimate attack.

"Now," he yelled! He placed his wrists together with his hands opened in front of him.

"Final Flash!"


	9. Chapter 8: Get the Holocron

**Disclaimer:** I do not own the characters, names, or anything in this story. It's a FanFiction.

**Chapter 8: Get the Holocron**

Zakee was laying in his bed wide awake thinking about Revan. People were saying that a heavy pressure made your knees weak when you were around him. That no one stood a chance against him as ISIS members fell by the dozens, and he made it seem effortless. Legends were already starting to develop about him. Where was this guy from? How come Dr. Rogers couldn't detect him because he was a human. Anyways, there's no way he'll be able to figure out this now. Zakee rolled over and saw his ninja pouch, and it reminded him of the battle.

Zakee kneeled to fix the strap on his boot. He was almost done when a slash of air flew right by his head! He got up and saw a swordsman running towards him. He side stepped the incoming slash and kicked him in his side sending him into the rock wall.

Squads of soldiers began charging Zakee shooting their laser blasters. Zakee did a set of hand signs and said, "Wind Style: Hurricane Fists!" He gathered a large amount of chakra into each fist and punched in the direction of incoming soldiers.

"Electric Snake Technique!"

Zakee jumped quick enough to avoid a giant snake made of electricity slam a few feet away from him. He saw a soldier doing another set of hand seals, but he was struggling with them. Zakee noticed this and began to do a set of seals too.

"Wind Style: Wind Dragon!"

"Lightning Style: Lightning Blast!"

The ISIS member must not have known that Electric Jutsu is weak to Wind Jutsu. The Wind Dragon swallowed the Lightning Blast and landed right where the ISIS member was standing.

Those two jutsus used up a lot of Zakee's chakra. He took a deep breath. He sensed a sword coming his way. He quickly drew his katana and coated it with his chakra swinging it to meet the incoming sword. The man that was attacking had black robes with a symbol that read Shinigami. Zakee began to attack with quick stabs and side swings. He threw in some kicks and punches to keep the Shinigami on his toes.

The opponent was blocking them all with ease. Then the Shinigami disappeared. Zakee stopped and looked around but didn't see him.

He heard "Kido 31: Red Flame Cannon!" from above and saw a giant ball of fire heading his way and it was too late to jump out of the way. He threw up his forearms to block to the blast. The explosion was strong enough to throw dust and smoke everywhere and pushed him back at least fifteen feet and only the ground.

When everything settled, Zakee stood up burnt and bleeding all over with a large shuriken in his hand. He lifted his head and threw the shuriken towards his opponent. The ISIS member side stepped the projectile getting ready to do another Kido spell. With the soldier fully turned towards Zakee, the shuriken turned into a cloud of thick smoke. Zakee yanked his arm away from his opponent. The soldier noticed a string, that must have been attached to the shuriken, tighten. He turned around to see Zakee, strapped to the wire heading towards him with his sword aimed at his stomach. He was going too fast; the soldier could not react quickly enough to dodge or block the attack. Zakee's katana went right through the stomach of the soldier. The ISIS soldier turned around to see the other Zakee poof into smoke. He looked back at the real Zakee. "Damn your Transformation and Shadow Clone Jutsu," he said coughing up blood.

Zakee pulled out the sword looking him in the eyes then stood up raising his glare towards the ongoing battle. From the corner of his eye, he saw a few fireballs fly right past him. Revan was about thirty yards away, making sure Zakee wasn't getting hit by the incoming fire jutsus.

'The leader,' he thought. 'How am I going to lead these guys if they can't even count on me to make it through a battle.'

Zakee took a deep breath and rolled over towards his window. The burns on his body didn't bother him anymore; they motivated him. He closed his eyes and waited for them to reach camp back at Area 51.

I took about two days to get back to camp. Everyone got off the ship and went their own ways. Many went to the doctor to get medicine and heal. Some went to the library to try and learn about new powers they had seen. There were even people that went to their rooms to mourn someone that they had lost.

Zakee was sitting in the lobby of the Hotel thinking about how weak he was towards the end, and it bothered him. He stood up and turned towards the library to go learn new jutsu. In the middle of the hallway to the library stood Sensei Rodan. Zakee walked towards him and said, "I'm going to the library to learn new Jutsu."

He tried to walk past his sensei, but Sensei Rodan put out his arm and stopped him. "Follow me if you really want to become stronger." Zakee could tell that his sensei was being completely serious about this by his stern face.

Zakee stared at him and said, "What are we waiting for then."

Sensei Rodan cracked a small smile and said, "Okay, I'll meet you at classroom twenty-four in ten minutes. I have to get some supplies." Zakee nodded and walked towards the classroom to wait.

Sensei Rodan walked into his room and laid a sealing scroll on his bed. He turned towards his room and began rummaging through his bookshelves looking for scrolls, books, and anything that might have information. He looked on his dresser and threw his Icha Icha series out of the way to grab thick books with dust all over them. Sensei Rodan had a lot of books stacked around his room. He considered himself an expert on knowledge. He walked over to a chest that had a lock on it and proceeded to pull a key out of his pocket. He unlocked the chest and pulled a book the size of a dictionary and placed it on the sealing scroll. He closed and locked the chest then put the key back in his pocket. He put all the books and scrolls that he wanted onto a giant scroll and sealed them into it. He rolled up the scroll and began walking towards classroom twenty-four where Zakee awaited.

Sensei Rodan walked into the classroom, and Zakee looked towards him. Sensei stood behind the podium and said, "I don't want you to say a single word until I'm finished. You almost got yourself killed out there. You were supposed to read the book on how to use the water in the air and in your body to perform Water Style Jutsu. You could have easily defeated any fire based opponent with that. This tells me that I have been too lenient on your training and studies. It shows that you've only focused on learning more jutsu instead of honing and perfecting the ones that you do know. From now on, all you will be doing is training and studying. Hell, most of the time they will be at the same time." Sensei Rodan pulled out his sealing scroll and rolled it across the a table.

"Sensei…" said Zakee but was immediately cut off by his Sensei unsealing the scroll.

"I'm not done yet." The smoke settled. "These are some books I have in my room. I want you to read each three times and practice what each book says every waking moment. Here are some books on kenjutsu that will help your footwork and swordsmanship dramatically. Some are Water Style Jutsu training guides along with Wind Style. Here's a book on hand to hand combat technique and old Jutsu books in general. This is a lot of the knowledge that I can teach you right now, but with me teaching other people, you will have to teach yourself a lot of it. We now house over a thousand soldiers with powers and the number only rises with each day that passes. I want you to start training the novice ninjas as well to sharpen your fundamentals and hand sign speed. However, I want you to do this with a Shadow Clone. In fact, I want you to have six Shadow Clones active always to increase your chakra reserves and stamina. Learn the Rasengan as well, it's in one of those books. I don't have much time, but I want you to begin at once. Your first classes will be tomorrow at ten in the morning." Right when Sensei Rodan finished, he turned into a puff of smoke. The shock wave of the poof sent dust flying off some of the covers of the books in the pile.

Zakee grabbed a few books and looked at the titles, "Battle Strategy 101," "Water Jutsus," there was a book that had a strange symbol on the cover, and the last book had two swords clashing on the cover. Zakee set all of them down except for the book that had a strange symbol. He opened the book and on the first page, "THE DRAGON CLAW TECHNIQUE" was written across in big letters. What the hell is this, thought Zakee. He looked up at the clock, and it read four o'clock in the afternoon.

Zakee created five shadow clones because that was his limit and then began reading his books. The first four books he chose were, "Battle Strategy 101," "Kenjutsu and Sword Techniques," "The Art of Water Jutsu," and "Chakra Reserves," and the last clone went to the training fields to practice his hand sign speed other techniques.

Clayton and Luca were practicing their sword fighting when they saw Zakee working on his signs. This was the same Luca that grew up with Ryder and Zakee. Luca stopped his attack on Clayton and looked over. However, Clayton followed in with his attack and kicked Luca in the face sending his five yards back onto the ground.

"Hey! I was looking the other way!" yelled Luca.

"Well maybe don't stop in the middle of a fight!"

Luca glared at Clayton and stood up brushing off dirt that was on his clothes now.

"I wonder what Zakee is up too over there… Wanna go check?" Clayton nodded in agreement, and they walked over to him.

"Hey, Zakee! What're doing?!" Zakee looked up and turned to them with sweat running down his face.

"I'm practicing my hand sign speed and chakra reserves," said Zakee blasting another Gale Palm. He stood up tall locking his hands over his head taking a break. "Sensei Rodan gave me a lot of books full of jutsus, techniques, and a lot of other useful information too. Y'all should read a few."

Zakee knew in his mind that there were a few books that he wanted to hide for himself. "Go ahead if you want, I'm just a shadow clone. The original is in classroom twenty-four reading right now." Luca and Clayton looked at each other and told the Shadow Clone thanks and that they're headed to see Zakee.

Clayton turned to Luca and said, "I hope that they're some advanced fire and earth jutsu books in there."

"Yeah, you need to work on more earth jutsu. I hope that there is a lightning jutsu book. I've already learned everything in the Ice Jutsu book Sensei Rodan gave me." They walked up to the classroom door and saw five total Zakees through the window.

Luca opened the door and said, "Wow, your clone sure wasn't lying when he said you have a lot of books."

Luca began reading the titles to some of the books over the clones' shoulder. Clayton walked over to a clone and looked at his book, "Battle Strategy 101."

Zakee looked at them both and said, "Feel free to read some of these. It's not like I can read all of them at once, well not yet at least." Clayton and Luca summoned two Shadow Clones each and began looking at the books on the table. Clayton grabbed: "Destructive Fire Jutsu," "Taijutsu," and "Battle Strategy 101." Then walked to the back of the room and began to read and study.

Luca paced the table and grabbed: "Hidden Art of Ice Release," "Lightning Techniques," and "Chakra Control." He walked to the side of the room and started reading and studying too. The three of them stayed up reading all night long. Zakee looked at his watch and saw it was nine fifty in the morning. He stood up without dispelling his shadow clones and said, "Okay, I'm headed to go teach." The two others just threw up a hand to show that they had acknowledged and understood what he had said.

Zakee walked to his classroom, room twelve and opened the doors. He looked around and said, "Welcome to Chakra Control. I'm Zakee, and I'll be teaching you for now."

Zakee taught them the basics of Chakra Control and had them do tests. This class lasted for an hour. When the class ended, he was the first one gone, and he was heading back to where all his books are.

He walked into the room and saw Luca and Clayton in the same seats they had been in all night. "Okay," he said, "we need to dispel our shadow clones so we can absorb the knowledge, and once that happens were gonna get tired. So, let's stop for right now and continue later." Everyone agreed, and they dispelled their clones and headed back to their rooms.

On the way back to their room, Zakee told Clayton that he'd meet him there and not to wait up. "Okay, I'm gonna shower then probably sleep so be quiet when you come in," said Clayton.

"Ok, I'll see you later." Zakee headed towards Sensei Rodan's office to ask him a question. He got to the door and knocked on it a few times.

"Come in," said Sensei Rodan.

"Oh, hello Zakee, how are the books?"

Zakee sat in a chair and responded, "Really good actually, I'm learning a lot. I have a question with one of the books though." He pulled out the book that had the strange symbol on it and passed it to his Sensei.

"I want you to teach me this technique. The Dragon Claw."

"Hmm... The Dragon Claw Technique," said Sensei stroking his beard. "Fine, but not before you can create twenty shadow clones, a Rasengan, and punch a 10-ton boulder to mere rubble. This technique demands the user to be very strong and well conditioned."

'Wow,' thought Zakee. 'This is a lot of work to learn this technique, but I know I can do it. I have to do it.' Zakee thought back on how he was knocked unconscious during the big fight they just got back from.

"Alright. I accept the conditions."

His Sensei looked back at the papers on his desk, waited a few seconds, then said, "Don't you have something to read?"

Zakee walked out the room then ran back to his room to take a quick nap. He walked into his room and put the Dragon Claw Technique book in one of the drawers in his dresser then fell asleep on his bed.

Three months later, President Reed and General Hall were sitting in the Oval Office, each with a cup of coffee.

"So, the raid on the Xeno three months ago was a fail. What was all the intel that we received?" asked the President to his general with a desperate look on his face.

"Yes, even though we were able to destroy their base, the number of casualties we sustained were too many to be considered a success. We were able to get an idea of the variety of powers that their forces had. We now know faces and what powers they have. We can use them for targeting and surveillance. The lives that were lost will not be in vein," said General Hall.

The President looked out of his window and into the garden that's planted right outside. "How many soldiers do we have in the academy?" asked the President.

"We have one thousand, four-hundred and twenty-seven soldiers. We have one more group coming in that we have found to have the power trait in them," said General Hall.

President rested his head on his hand and said, "Tell General Rodan, I want a squad of four soldiers for a special mission." President Reed gave General Hall a scroll that had the President's Seal of Approval on it.

General Hall stood up and said, "Yes sir, I will get on that right now." General Hall walked out of the Oval Office and pulled out his phone. He dialed General Rodan and waited for a pick up.

"Hello?" answered General Rodan.

General Hall spoke, "Rodan, this is General Hall. The President wants a team of four. He has a special mission that needs taken care of."

There was a pause on the phone. "When does he need them by?" asked Sensei Rodan.

"He wants them here within two hours. I'll get Jerry to send the information over right now," responded General Hall. He hung up the phone and walked to the teleportation room. General Hall looked around and saw Jerry across the room. He walked over and gave Jerry the scroll. Jerry can teleport small objects over a far distance. He took the scroll to his desk and placed it on the surface. He reached over the scroll and closed his eyes. The scroll vanished in an instant.

Rodan walked over to the table where the scroll with a red sign appeared. It read, "General Rodan. TOP PRIORITY." He unsealed the scroll and began reading it.

It said, "General Rodan, there is a caravan that in passing through a desert valley in Egypt. This caravan dug up an artifact that holds great power and knowledge. This group plans to sell it to an ISIS agent. Assemble a small team of four and come to the briefing room within two hours."

Sensei Rodan leaned back in his chair and began to think who the team of four will be. He started to think of the captain that would lead the squad. Zakee is a smart leader with powerful jutsus at his disposal, so he'll be the captain. Since the mission is going to be an ambush, grab and go attack, we need an assassin that can hide in plain sight. Someone that can strike from the air will be useful for intel and sensory. Let's see… Jackson could do this since he can fly, but his Saiyan powers will be too loud if we need to do this quietly. Sarah's Pidgeotto would be great for this! So, that's two. Clayton's high IQ will be a good addition. And the last one will be Taylor. I like his Ghoul speed for this mission. He leaned over and put all their I.D. numbers in on a computer program. An alert was sent to all their mission alert apps on their phone, computer, and watch.

Within ten minutes all four of them were in a line facing General Rodan. He turned around and said, "You four have been selected for a special mission under the President's Orders. What you need to know is that, the mission is in Egypt, so pack accordingly. We do not know how long the mission will take, so pack clothes that will last. If a full fight breaks out, you will be on your own. If that is the case, you need to have anything you need for battle. I will give you two hours to pack, and after that let's meet back here. You may go."

Everyone dispersed and went their own way except Clayton and Zakee. They went to room twenty-four to take one last look at those books. Zakee looked at Clayton, "Hey, let's take a few of these if this is going to be a long mission. That's what I've been doing with my other missions at least."

"Okay, that sounds good to me. I'm going to take these two jutsu books." Clayton took two books and placed them on a seal scroll. He reverse summones and sealed the books within the scroll. Zakee grabbed a tattered book with a dragon on its cover and a mist jutsu book.

They left the room and headed to their room to begin packing. The intercom echoed throughout the hallways, "All new recruits, please report to the cafeteria. All new recruits, please report to the cafeteria now."

Putting some spare clothes in his bag Zakee said, "I didn't know we had new recruits coming in today."

"Yeah, I heard that this is the last group for a while. We're starting to run out of space here, and there are three other academies too, right?" asked Clayton.

"Right, but did you hear about the one in Oregon?" Zakee knew Clayton answer by his blank facial expression. "Well it was an average day at the academy in Salem. A group of Jedi, ninja, and Shinigami were practicing their sword skills with General Fox. He's a Shinigami that teaches a swords class. They were practicing when a body flew onto the floor from a balcony higher up that went outside. Everyone stopped and stood still. Someone dressed in black ninja clothes, a gray flak jacket, and a white mask jumped to the ground. They say that General Fox was about to fight the guy in the mask, but he started to use the Force to knock down the stone pillars inside the academy. The masked guy was a Jedi with a red lightsaber that could use lightning better than a summer storm. The whole academy ended up collapsing. General Fox could only save twelve students out of twenty-three. Rumor has it that he stole a holocron from that academy. They won't say what it had inside, but that's basically what were about to go take from this caravan." Zakee threw that last shuriken he had in his bag and said, "Alright, let's go."

Zakee and Clayton were the first ones at General Rodan's office, but Taylor and Sarah came shortly after.

"Okay, let's head towards the briefing room," said Rodan.

They all started to walk there with bags in hand. "Now remember, the most important thing y'all do out there is too WORK together. Deduce the situation and then execute the plan."

They all spoke at once and said, "Yes, sir!"

They walked into the briefing room and saw holograms of President Reed, General Hall, and Doctor Rogers talking around a table.

"Ah, they're here. Come, stand around the table," said the President. "General Hall, here, will go over y'all's plan. I understand there are only four of you all, so pay attention. Take it away."

The four soldiers gathered around the table with their teacher on the outer edge. General Hall pointed towards a valley and began, "This is the canyon where the caravan is going to try and pass through. We want y'all to halt their cargo and steal this artifact that they have." A picture of a red pyramid prism appeared in front of the four. "First, we need Sarah's Pidgeotto to quietly fly ahead for intel. Once we find them and the valley, we wait to ambush the caravan and take the holocron. To get this, I want Zakee to create a heavy fog around the caravan and hide in a river in front of the caravan to trick them. Clayton, use your shadow paralysis jutsu to keep the targets still. Taylor, you run in there and take the holocron from them. This should be a quick mission that has a high success rate. God forbid it if anything goes wrong, Clayton, figure out a plan that has the highest success rate for all of you to come back safely. Any questions," asked General Hall looking at his four young soldiers? "You leave out in thirty minutes." The holograms faded out.

All four of them looked at each other nervously and reviewed the plan. This was their first four-man mission that could turn bad in an instant.

They quickly suited up and walked out of the briefing room towards the hanger. Between them and the hanger was the lobby where all the new recruits were gathered. Zakee tightened his wrist tape and checked his shuriken count while making his way down the hall.

Clayton made sure he had all his supplies and some food pellets for the road.

Taylor began picking a song on his iPod to pump him up when he bumped into another student's shoulder knocking him to the ground. Taylor turned towards him and noticed that he was a fresh recruit and yelled, "Get out of my way rookie! I'm on official business!"

Sarah grabbed Taylor by the sleeve and began to drag him towards the hanger. "Cut it out. You're not tough trying to scare the new recruits," she jeered.

A male about eighteen with brown buzzed hair and a military uniform walked over to the new student that was on the ground. "I hear that they are basically a part of the A-Team here," said the buzzed head guy. He extended his arm to his fellow solider on the ground and helped him up.

"Thanks, Nero." The man that was knocked over glanced back towards the group that was storming down the hallway and said, "That black guy with them looks a lot like someone I knew from my high school."

Nero looked back at the group and took a mental image of him. "Good, so I can go ruff up the one that knocked you into the ground," said Nero with a mischievous smirk as he walked towards the guy that knocked down his friend.

Standing up, he rubbed his head and spoke to Nero saying, "Cool it. We can't be getting into trouble on the first day here."

Nero looked around and then back to the other male. "Fine then."

The lady at the front of the group spoke out and said, "Hello everyone! Does everyone have their name tag on? Raise your hand if you don't have one." She scanned the group and everyone had their name tag.

She continued, "Since I now know your names, let me introduce myself. I am Janice Schmidt, the Secretary to the President, and I control the intercom system for announcements along with introducing new recruits to the Roxy Program. Now, if you all will follow me, we will head to the Roxy Room."

She had seen Taylor knock one of the new recruits in the back down on the ground when she was walking towards the group, but she decided to wait until after the introduction to say something about it. "Also, watch out for others that are passing you through the hallway. We don't need any of you injured on your first day! Isn't that right." She squinted her eyes but couldn't read the name tag because she was so far away.

"Ryder," he said annoyed with the lady.

She threw up her index finger and said, "Alrighty then Ryder! Let's go to the Roxy Room!"


	10. Chapter 9: Demon in the Mist

_I own none of this content, and please support the original released that each power and ability comes from! _

**Chapter 9: Demon in the Mist**

Ryder continued to follow his group through the hallways of this academy. He looked around to try and understand where he was, but all he could figure out was that he was in a large building in the middle of the desert that had soldiers around the same age as him. The only thing he recognized was his friend, Nero Slosslane, and a few terms that he picked up from other conversations.

The last thing Ryder remembered was coming home from work at Chick-fil-A and watching _Impractical Jokers_. That was it. He closed his eyes and thought hard.

Images of a sandy region with soldiers wearing camo appeared. Nero was to his left, but his best friend was the only one that was recognizable. Everyone had a rifle in hand, except for their squad leader. The squad leader was looking through a pair of binoculars out into a desert, where they saw a bright flash of orange, red, and yellow colors burst into the sky.

Flashes of memories started to appear chaotically. An enemy soldier with a short, black buzzed haircut and dressed in baggy, khaki shorts and a white tank walked up on top of a top of a hill of sand. Fire rippled from his shoulders.

The scorching heat reflecting off the sand made the image of the enemy wave as if he was on asphalt in the dead heat of august. The squad leader shouted the order for us to fire upon the enemy, and we did as was instructed. None of our shots hit him. The bullets rang through his body, but the bullet holes engulfed into flames. Those holes were quickly replaced with the flesh that should have been gone.

Suddenly, the enemy thrusted his fist towards us, and a large fire in the shape of a fist headed towards one side of the squad scorching the bodies of many friends and soldiers

The next thing Ryder remembered was that he was on a bus riding through a sandy plain and every so often he could pass a cactus. The only thing that he recognized was his friend, Nero. Nothing more came to his mind. Ryder opened his eyes and wiped the dripples of sweat from his forehead.

A tall, blond-haired lady led Ryder and the other rookie recruits down a long hallway. This hallways had gray walls and no windows. People would walk out of sliding doors. He was able to get a quick glimpse of the rooms they were leaving. He saw small desks that were often in high schools and a chalk board at the front of the class room.

Their instructor upfront said out, "Now, please follow me into the Roxy Room. Everyone will wait in the waiting room until it is your turn to go onto the Roxy. When you finish, you will go into the post room and wait for your results." The lady guided everyone into a fairly small room with seats lining the room in rows. "Now for the first one up, Guy Lightfoot. Please follow me."

A guy around twenty-two stood up and followed the proctor into a room. He 'had an athletic build and was wearing jeans and a loose green shirt. The waiting room was plain and dull. Gray walls surrounded them and red chairs lined the floor.

About two hours passed until the lady walked out and said, "Uhm, Nero Slosslane."

Nero stood up and nodded towards Ryder then walked with the lady to the back. He had a confident walk per usual.

Another hour passed until the lady came out again and said, "Ryder Jase."

Ryder stood up and looked around the room. Many of the other recruits were nearly dozing off from the long wait. He followed the lady through the first doors.

"Hi, Ryder," said the lady guiding him. "I'm Janice, and I'll be leading you through this process. I'm glad that we have officially met, face-to-face," she said with a large smile. "What we are about to do might tingle for a short second, but it will end quickly. We are going to strap you into a chair send electric pulses through your brain to unlock a power dormant inside of you. Not everyone has this, so you sure are lucky!" She said with a large smile.

Janice crept out Ryder. She smiled at everything and seemed like a robot.

They walked into a room that had a handful of doctors and a large mirror on the wall which he assumed to be a two-way mirror.

A doctor walked up and said, "Are you ready, because there is no turning back after this."

Ryder gave a quick and firm response saying, "Yes, sir." Deep down he knew this was what he was supposed to do.

Doctor Rogers led Ryder to a chair that had straps on the arm rests, around the leg area, and on that would go around the chest. He laid down on the chair, relaxed, and allowed the doctors to strap him in. Doctor Rogers began explaining the procedure while toying with the straps and monitor.

"When we turn on the machine, it will send electric pulses through your brain which will manifest your latent power, or powers if you have more than one. Some people have said that they were taken to a white void and met personifications of their power. If that's not the case, it will feel like you simply took a nap."

One of the assistants tightened the straps, and Dr. Rogers said, "Alright, here we go." He typed the key word sequence then hit 'Enter' starting the process. Ryder closed his eyes and waited for something to happened.

Doctor Rogers sat patiently waiting for Ryder to wake up like the past thousand other soldiers. This had gotten to be a boring process for him even though it was something spectacular.

"This kid has been in there for a few minutes. He should wake up any minute now," said Doctor Rich, one of Doctor Rogers' assistants. Within seconds, machines, the doctors, tool, and many other things began to levitate and shake frantically.

"What's happening, Doctor Rogers?!"

Doctor Rogers couldn't respond because he didn't know what was happening either! This was the first time that this had happened during any of the processes. After a few long seconds, everything began floating back down to the ground and was set down gently.

Doctor Rogers actively studied the monitor waiting for the screen to show what powers Ryder had. A golden circle appeared on the black screen. After a few seconds, a red raven with a silver or gray bar beneath it showed up inside the golden circle. The doctors leaned in and stared at the monitor with bewilderment.

Ryder had his eyes closed when a bright flash appeared. He opened his eyes to see Doctor Rogers staring at the monitor.

"So, what's it say?" asked Ryder.

Dr. Rogers didn't respond.

"Hellooo, are you going to answer?" Silence only followed his question.

"Remember," said a soft voice over the Ryder's shoulder. Ryder's eyes grew two times their size as he saw a familiar friend but couldn't quite make him out.

"Who are you? What power are you?!" Ryder's mind was spinning from the confusion. A man was dressed in a red and black battle armor that had many scratches stood a few yards away from Ryder and the other doctors. He had four lightsabers on his belt, but his whole figure had a blue and red hue.

"Remember your mission. Don't become distracted. Use the Force, Ryder." With those last words, the man faded away and darkness appeared again.

Ryder opened his eyes to about ten scientists leaning over him. Once his eyes looked at them, they all backed away quickly.

"Ryder, can you please describe to use what you saw in the void?" asked Doctor Rogers.

Ryder looked at the doctor and acted as if he was a little scared and said, "A man… A man in robes with a silver stick in his hand. All he said was, 'Use the Force.'" Ryder decided to leave out the first part of what the man had told him.

Doctor Rogers nodded his head slowly and said, "I understand, well please go into the post room to await your results."

The scientists unstrapped Ryder who got up and headed directly towards the post-examination room.

When Ryder left, Doctor Rich leaned towards Doctor Rogers and asked, "What does the golden circle and a red raven mean?"

Doctor Roger scratched his head and said, "I'm not sure to be honest. The gray bar is the Jedi symbol, but I'm not sure why there was a red raven or the Jedi symbol inside a gold circle. We'll just have to keep a close eye on him."

Doctor Rogers stood up and went to the printer and grabbed the pieces of paper that told each recruit their power. He left and went into the post-room. The post room fit all twenty-five of the recruits. It was an exact replica of the previous waiting room.

"I have your papers here that say what power you have. I am going to read off your name and you come get it. Ready? First name, Nero Slosslane." Nero walked up to the front, shook the Doctor's hand and grabbed his paper.

He read it on the way back to his seat then showed it to Ryder. It said, "Nero Slosslane: Devil Fruit Power, String-String Fruit. Ghoul." There was a confident look on Nero's face. He knew what his powers were, but to see it on paper like this left him with a good sense of pride.

A few more candidates went until the Doctor said out, "Ryder Jase."

Ryder walked up there calmly and took his paper. He didn't look at it on the way back. He gave it to Nero who looked at it.

"I like mine better. To be honest, I don't even know what yours means," said Nero out loud. Ryder gave a chuckle as he looked at the paper.

"Ryder Jase: Jedi Knight (AO)."

Zakee, Clayton, Taylor, and Sarah were about a mile away from the canyon that the ISIS caravan was going to travel through. Zakee, Clayton, and Taylor had set up a tent to strategize the mission at hand while Sarah was flying to the valley to make sure the surroundings were correct on the map.

On the middle table, Clayton was pointing out all the spots where they'll be as the caravan passes through. A river lined the right side of the dirt road that ran through the bottom of the canyon. The sides of the river were lined with large rocks.

"That's where you'll be Zakee. When you give us the sign, which will be your fog, we'll know that the mission is under way," explained Clayton.

"The fact that this is going to happen in a canyon really helps us out in two ways. It allows Zakee's fog to be thicker, and I can have a strong control over my shadow possession jutsu." Clayton moved his finger to a pile of rocks that had built up on the side of the canyon. This is where I'll be. Once the caravan gets close enough, I'll use my Shadow Possession Jutsu on it to keep it still while Taylor grabs the holocron. You can hide wherever you think will be the best for you."

Zakee and Taylor nodded in agreement with the plan. Immediately after, Sarah barged in the tent and said, "They're early. Right now, they are about two miles away."

"Okay, let's get everything ready. We all need to be in position in five minutes," said Clayton as he left the tent.

Ryder rummaged through his bag until he pulled out a black shirt that had three buttons going down from the neck and black pants too. He grabbed his pouch and attached it to his thigh. Then put his katana through his hilt loop on his back.

'It's time,' he thought. He got up and left for the cliff.

Upon reaching the cliff, Sarah turned a dial on her watch then pressed it down. A green light flashed, and she turned into yellow humanoid Pokémon with a spoon in its right hand.

"I'm ready," she said as her Pokémon, Kadabra.

Ryder jumped down to his position on the banks of the river while everyone else prepared for their plan. Sitting down behind a rock, Ryder held up his index and middle fingers on both hands. His left hand was chest level and the other was above his head.

"Water Style: Hidden Mist Jutsu."

The driver in the first car of the caravan kept on his path heading around a bend of a cliff. "Sir! Up ahead we have a heavy fog that's rolled in!" he yelled to the back.

The captain gritted his teeth as he pulled open the top hatch that had a mounted laser machine gun. He climbed up to the gun and sat there waiting. He gazed into the fog and began shooting aimlessly into it. Nothing but dust and rocks flew into the air.

"Stop the trucks," the captain yelled to the rest of his crew! "Zack, check what the cause of this fog is!" yelled the captain.

"Yes, sir! Wind Style: Gale Storm!" He wove some hand signs, then a large wind picked up dispersing the fog. "There's a river, sir! That's probably where the fog came from," Zack pointed out!

"Just keep going. Be on your guard," replied the captain.

Zakee took a deep breath, with his hands still in their Hidden Mist Jutsu position, he said, "Water Style: Silent Killing Jutsu."

A thick mist appeared from the river. The thickness blinded Zakee from seeing the cart. He thought back to one of his training sessions with Sensei Rodan.

_"Killing intent can be used to strike fear or even paralyze your opponents."_

Zakee took a deep breath. With his thoughts, intentions, desires, and his whole body, Zakee released his own killing intent.

"Captain!" yelled out Zack. "I can't see the cart in front of us or behind us!"

"Just keep going," the captain demanded.

"But… don't you feel it too?" Zack was quivering from his own fear of dying and what the power that was making him fear death at that moment.

Suddenly, they heard a loud crash from in front and behind them.

"We've been ambushed," said the captain. "They just took out our other carts. We're the last one."

Zack and the other soldier gulped.

"Muscle up you two. They aren't that strong. They just know a few useful jutsu," said the captain encouraging his men. He spread both arms to the side then yelled, "Wind Style: Violent Wind Palm!"

Shots of pressurized wind dispersed the thick mist.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" yelled Clayton. Shadows bolted out from the base of the cliff going in all directions. One after another, Clayton was able to get a few of the crew members of the caravan, but three of them were quick enough to evade Clayton's shadow threads.

Zakee jumped out of the water giving the sign for an attack. He locked eyes with the captain as Taylor and Sarah came out as a Ghoul and Kadabra.

"Don't let them take the holocron!" yelled the captain as he charged Zakee and his squad.

Sarah sent a few Psybeams towards an inexperienced Z-Fighter who took them to the chest and crashed into the side of one of the car.

Taylor rushed a swordsman with his kagune flaring out from his back. Each slash of the sword was blocked with one of Taylor's two kagunes.

"You're going to wish that you never messed with us, kid," said the captain as he began to float into the sky. He raised a finger and a flash of purple light glowed from the tip. With a yell, the captain sent a purple energy beam towards Zakee.

Reaching him in an instant, Zakee barely dodged it by moving his head to the side. "I don't think you know who you're messing with," he said as he jumped onto the river. Zakee began weaving hand signs.

"Water Style: Evil Windmill Shuriken!"

Three large water shurikens formed and shot towards the captain. The captain jumped out of the way, but using his chakra, Zakee controlled them and made them change directions toward where the captain just landed. They crashed into the ground creating an explosion, but Zakee knew the captain wasn't down, so he quickly ran towards him ready to engage in a sword fight.

Zakee jumped into the air after forming another set of hand seals and yelled "Wind Style: Air Slice!" as he began slashing his sword in the air. The slashes caused wind to form scythes that flew through the dust and debris of the previous jutsu.

The dust settled, and the captain stood in the middle of the explosion with no scratches and only a smile. He bent his knees and began to yell as he powered up. The ground began to shake as rocks began to levitate.

"Taylor! I might need some help!" yelled Zakee across the field.

Clayton was trying to think of a way to get his possessed targets out of the action, so he did a few more hand signs and said, "Shadow Style: Burning Ash Shadow!" He bit and grinded his teeth and a spark appeared, igniting the shadows as if it was gunpowder. The fire was strong enough to burn and knock out everyone possessed with the shadow.

Clayton ran to where Zakee was prepared to fight alongside his partner. Zakee looked over and said, "Thanks, Clayton. Let's try it out."

Clayton smiled and nodded then said, "Earth Style: Rock Fists!" Rocks formed over his hands. Then he said again, "Earth Style: Lightweight Rock Technique!" His hands lightened up making it a lot easier to fight. He ran towards the captain engaging him in a battle of fists. Each punch was met with either another punch canceling it out or a strong block.

"Earth Style: Stone Pillar!"

A pillar of stone shot out of the ground and towards the captain, but it was crushed in a single punch. Zakee had been continuously watching for an opening to show up, he finally found one. The captain was in the air and couldn't move.

"Water Style: Drilling Water Spears!" Multiple spears formed from the river and shot towards the ISIS captain exploding on contact.

"Direct hit!" yelled Clayton.

Sarah had been dealing with a Z-fighter that kept his distance. He wasn't very fast, but the fighter was very strong. He sent one chi blast after another and would never stop. Sarah knew what move to use in this situation. She used the bent spoons to blast Psybeams towards her opponent at an extremely fast rate, tiring out her opponent.

He noticed this, so he began powering up for a final attack. He hovered in the air above Sarah and put his palms above his head. Yellow sparks of light began to appear, and he yelled out, "Masenko!" He thrusted his hands towards Sarah, and a yellow beam of plasma and light shot down to the ground. The explosion destroyed anything that came close to it, leaving a large hole where the attack landed.

"Where the hell is that alien looking monster?!" he yelled after noticing he missed.

"Psychic!" yelled Sarah. She had used Teleport right before she was going to be hit by the Masenko beam to get behind the Z-Fighter. Psychic blasted the fighter out of the air as he crashed into the same crater he had created.

Taylor stood up after being sliced by this two-style swordsman. "This is so boring," complained Taylor. Taylor had taken what seemed to be multiple cuts on his arms and legs from this opponent.

"What was that, kid?! I'll show you! Two-Sword Style: Dancing Dragon!" The swordsman did a lightning fast slash towards Taylor's chest, but Taylor had already bent backwards to dodge the attack. While in this position, he went ahead and decided to end the fight, so he used his kagune and pierced the swordsman in the heart.

"Finally, it's over." The swordsman eyes were opened in shock of his speed and power.

The ISIS captain noticed Taylor and his unique fighting style. "Ooo I like this one; he's got some spunk to him." He vanished and then reappeared in front of Taylor. With a strong kick, the captain sent Taylor high into the air. As he smirked, the captain began lighting him up with a multitude of chi blasts. These chi blasts were much stronger than the other Z-fighter's. After a dozen or so, Taylor's screams stopped as he fell to the ground unconscious.

"I might as well take care of the girl while I'm at it," said the captain walking towards Sarah.

Thinking quickly, Sarah decided to teleport behind the captain and hit his with a Psychic then a Psybeam.

"So, predictable," said the captain staring at Sarah.

She disappeared and reappeared behind the captain but was met with a fist flying at her face. 'How did he know,' she thought as she realized that she was outmatched.

The punch launched her into the side of the canyon on the other side of the river. Rocks flew everywhere as she fell from the crater in the cliff onto the shore of the river.

"Nooo!" yelled Zakee.

He began weaving hand seals as Clayton protected Zakee from incoming blasts with a series of rock walls.

Zakee yelled out, "Dual Dragon Style: Wind and Water Dragons!" Two dragons of different elements appeared on both sides of Zakee and took off towards the ISIS captain.

"Now this is more like it!" said the captain in excitement! He sent two dark purple chi blasts towards the two dragons and met them halfway between him and Zakee.

Zakee kept his hand sign in tact as he kept putting more and more chakra into his jutsu. He looked over at Clayton and gave him a nod. The dragons overwhelmed the chi blast and blew up in front of the captain.

The captain slowly got up from his knees and glared at Zakee as he said, "This is the first time that I have had to use this in a fight. You should feel lucky." The ISIS captain took a step back and powered up again. Zakee just smirked as he grabbed what seemed to be a heavier kunai out of his pouch.

"Well let's just see how lucky I really am," Zakee said with a smirk.

The captain stopped powering up and rushed Zakee throwing punch after punch. Zakee was struggling to keep up with the speed, but having his kunai out helped him stop a few of the stronger punches. A leg flew up from the front and hit Zakee right in the chin sending his high up in the sky. The captain jumped up and punched him in the side propelling Zakee back into the ground. The captain landed and turned towards Clayton, who was charging up his next attack.

"You see, I am too strong for the lot of you all. Just give up, and I might spare your life." The captain slowly started walking towards Clayton, cracking his knuckles and neck.

Clayton stood there patiently while he waited for Zakee to hopefully get up and finish their attacks and defeat this guy. Drips of sweat kept getting into Clayton's eyes making it harder and harder to see as they stung. Smoke rose into the air, as the captain turned around to see what happened, Zakee was right above the captain with his fist cocked back.

"Wind Release: Air Vacuum Fighting Technique!"

Using a large burst of air pressure, Zakee punched the captain sending his straight into the ground with such force that he bounced back into the air. While the captain was suspended in midair, Zakee kicked him sending the captain into the side of a cliff. He looked over to Clayton and yelled, "NOW!"

Clayton did a series of hand signs at the exact same time Zakee did and yelled, "Fire Style: Fire Ball Jutsu!"

Zakee saw the giant fire ball form as he wiped his blood with his thumb, slammed it onto the ground and yelled, "Summoning: Giant Windmill!" With a poof of white clouds, a giant windmill came into existence creating a great amount of wind amplifying the fireball dramatically. Instead of a fireball going towards the captain, the wind pushed the fire out of form and created a tsunami effect.

The captain staggered to his feet and looked at the attack with a determined face as put his hands out. He sent out his strongest chi blast that collided with the wave of fire. The fire was too strong for the chi blast as it was enveloped and collided with its caster creating a massive explosion of fire and light.

After the smoke cleared, Zakee walked over to Clayton panting and all scraped up. He put his hand on his shoulder and said, "I don't sense his energy. I think we got him."

Clayton took a few deep breathes before he was able to respond. He calmed his breathing and said, "We need to go check on the others." Zakee nodded in agreement as they walked over to the two who were still on the ground unconscious.

"You stay here with them, and I'll go check on the captain and make sure he's dead," said Zakee.

"Okay, but be careful. He was really strong and it wouldn't be good if he was still conscious," responded Clayton.

Zakee ran over to the captain and approached him with caution. He walked up to his neck slowly and checked his pulse. He was dead; that was for sure. He searched his pockets, looking for something useful that might lead them to the holocron. In his pants pocket was a small, golden key, and Zakee had a feeling he knew what it went to.

He headed back to Clayton. "I've got a key. We need to see if it goes to a chest on one of the trucks." Zakee was excited to find this holocron because he had no idea why it was so important.

They called their ship to their location, and it was there within a few seconds. The two of them loaded up Sarah and Taylor, putting them in the two passenger chairs that were in the back.

"Okay, let's go find that safe," said Clayton looking at Zakee. They walked over to the caravan and began searching the trucks.

Clayton began searching the truck the captain was in for a chest that would have the holocron hopefully. Zakee looked in one of the other trucks that had a turret mounted on-top. He climbed in the back and started looking through all the boxes on the ground. There were ammo boxes with an exception to food boxes scattered.

After about ten minutes of looking, Zakee came across a black box that had a gold lock on the front. He reached in pants pocket and pulled out the gold key he found earlier. The two were perfect fits as the key slid in effortlessly. He unlocked the box and opened it revealing the holocron.

The red sides of the pyramid sparkled and emitted a tremendous pressure that was heavy, but Zakee took it out and placed it in his pocket. "I found it!" he yelled out to Clayton.

"Here, take a look at it." Zakee tossed the holocron to Clayton, so he could study it.

"It looks like it can be opened up somehow. Judging on the presence alone, I don't think it will open if you pry on it though. I'm pretty sure only Jedi can open them up, and you have to be a strong one to do that too." Clayton finished studying it and gave it back to Zakee. He put in a box in the back and got back in the pilot's chair.

"Okay, let's head back to base," said Zakee. The two walked to their ship and climbed the front seats. He put the throttle all the way down, and they zoomed back to their base in Alexandria, Egypt.

Back at Area 51, it had been two months since Ryder had shown up, and he had already made a name for himself. In those three weeks, he had learned close to everything the 'Jedi Master' knew at an extremely high rate that it gained the President's attention.

"Who is this, Ryder?" asked President Reed as he observed his lightsaber combat skills with the training proxy.

General Hall lifted his iPad and scrolled through the files until he saw a document titled, 'Jase, Ryder.' He clicked on the file and began to read it.

"This is Ryder Jase. He's from Montgomery, Alabama and joined the military at the ripe age of eighteen when his father died of a sudden heart attack. He's been in the Marines for two years now stationed in Pakistan. He was in the platoon that was attacked by the soldier that ate the Flame-Flame fruit. When they put him on the Roxy Classifier, the Jedi symbol appeared along with a red raven all inside a golden circle on the other monitor. We do not know that means now, but we're watching him closely, so we can record what it is and his potential. He hasn't built his own lightsaber, yet, but he is very effective with a training blade which should translate over." General Hall gave the President his iPad to read the file.

He began nodding in approval saying, "I see. He's knowledgeable in, what's that, two lightsaber forms?"

Ryder was doing his lightsaber form practice in a gym down below. "No, sir," said General Hall.

President Reed whipped his head around, confused by what the General said. General Hall continued, "He is excellent in two forms, but has picked up the basics of two other forms without even knowing about them. He has excelled tremendously in forms: One, or Shii-Cho. It is the simplistic form derived from common sword fighting techniques. One of the sword masters said that when he practices this form, it is like watching water flow over the falls. He's fluid and his strikes are strong."

The president looked on from his observation room. He noticed how his footwork was smooth as he pivoted through his steps. The way we swung and moved his lightsaber didn't have any kinks or rough edges either.

General Hall continued to explain, "Then he excels at form three: Soresu, the patient and defensive form. The other two forms that he has picked up on is: Form Two, Makashi, the elegant and focused footwork form that is used for countering the opponent. He is a natural when it comes to footwork. He only knows the basic training routine, but he is expected to advance quickly. He has also picked up on Form Five, Djem-So, while he's practiced dueling and simply fusing his personality with other fighting styles. This form incorporates powerful attacks and defense at once followed by a counter-strike."

President Reed looked on in amazement as Ryder quickly defeated another proctor droid.

"Along with knowledge on lightsaber forms," said General Hall. "He is incredibly gifted in the ways of the Force. He can already use multiple abilities Force abilities like: Force Grip, Battle Meditation, Force Enlightenment, Force Camouflage, Force Precognition, and a few others. He will become a very good asset for our country, Mr. President."

President Reed stroked his chin as he heard General Hall list Ryder's achievements. He looked over at the General and said, "So, is he a fast learner, or is he a spy? It's strange how fast he has picked up on many things." General Hall's eyebrows rose in curiosity. The two turned towards Ryder and kept watching him practice.

Ryder finished his training with the proctor droid and wiped the sweat rolling down his forehead.

"You did a mighty fine job today, master Jedi," said the droid.

"Yeah, well it isn't very difficult when you refuse to up the difficulty," responded Ryder as he hooked his lightsaber on his utility belt.

"You are still a novice, sir. It goes against my programing to increase the difficulty any further than what we've already done," explained the droid.

Ryder chuckled then said to his training partner, "Seems like I'll just have to make a request to the General." He turned and walked towards the exit.

Right before he walked out of the doors, he yelled back to the droid and said, "See ya tomorrow!"

He walked down the dull hallway towards the cafeteria. The walls were gray and metal and only had windows when they faced the training grounds or outside. This place wasn't as bad as he thought it was going to be. The people here were nice and the food was delicious enough to have leftovers every day. Within the past few weeks, Sensei Rodan and Ryder had become fairly close due to the Sensei giving him special attention. General Hall had told Sensei Rodan about the President's concerns, so Rodan took a special note to observe him carefully. He learned that Ryder loved learning. Something that was rare to find in students.

The first time General Rodan met Ryder, he was in the Library. Rodan wanted to introduce himself because he knew about Ryder's monitor results and that he was a rookie recruit. He walked up to Ryder and saw that he was reading, "Physics of Ki Blasts." Confused because he knew that Ryder was a Jedi, he asked, "Sorry, I don't mean to interrupt, but why are you reading a book about chi blasts when you're a Jedi?"

Ryder set the book down and looked up at the shinobi then said, "When I go up against a Saiyan or a Z-Fighter, I want to be able to counter their attack and know its weakness."

General Rodan loved that response. Ever since that day, General Rodan had been giving him books on different powers that scientists had studied. Sensei Rodan could not help himself because he loved how fascinated Ryder was with new information. He was a fast reader too, so Sensei Rodan gave him other books on the Force as well. Ryder had already read a lot of the Force books but enjoyed the refresher of the basics.

General Rodan saw Ryder sitting with Nero in the cafeteria talking about their earlier training. He walked over and said, "Can I talk to the two of you?" The two student nodded at the General and let him continue. "The top Generals have decided to put the best of our soldiers in teams of three for missions to give to them. I've been informed that you two boys have been placed in Squad 6. Your third member is the Shinigami, Murdoch. He is a very skilled fighter, so he should fit in with you two."

Nero leaned back in his chair giving a little laugh. "We'll see if he can keep up with us. Where is he?" Nero looked around and didn't see anyone new near them.

General Rodan smiled and said, "He's in the training room, working on his sword fighting. Ryder, he'd be a good practice partner for you. You could also just tone down the heat of your training lightsaber as well so that you won't have to use an actual sword."

Ryder looked up at General Rodan and said, "Okay. Is he going to join us tomorrow for training?"

General Rodan stood up and nodded his head. He turned and walked towards that door, but before he got there he stopped and turned back around. He rummaged through his bag that hung over his shoulder and took out two books. He tossed "True Haki" to Nero, and he tossed "Strengths and Weaknesses of Dojutsus" to Ryder. "I think y'all will like these two books; they're pretty interesting," said General Rodan as he exited the cafeteria.

_I hope you enjoy this chapter, and let me know in the comment section what you thought of it!_

_~Aldon_


	11. Chapter 10: The Tournament

Please support the original releases of the powers and abilities that this story line is based off of. Enjoy!

**Chapter 10: The Tournament**

Zakee was tired of all the traveling that took place between Alexandria and Area 51. He had been on and off ships and trains all day until now. They had just arrived at Area 51 and couldn't be happier. News about Zakee and his team retrieving the holocron had spread through the academy like wildfire within the past few days. A lot of the students had gone up to one of them asking how hard it was to get and how strong the opponents were. Zakee, Clayton, Taylor, and Sarah walked into the academy with a thunderous applause from everyone for completing the very first mission of the academy. Sensei Rodan stood in the corner near the hallway that led to the briefing room. Zakee walked over to Sensei Rodan and gave him a high-five.

"Seems like you're the big man on campus right now, doesn't it?" said Sensei Rodan.

Zakee smiled as he looked out into the crowd. His smile soon changed into a dull, straight face. "We almost lost Taylor AND Sarah…"

Sensei Rodan quickly turned and looked at Zakee and said, "The important thing is that y'all didn't. You four worked together to get the job done, and achieved your goal!"

Zakee put his arm in his pocket and pulled out a red pyramid.

"Is this it? Is this the holocron?" This was Sensei Rodan's first time seeing a holocron too. It was small; about the size of a baseball. The sides of the pyramid triangles were still a bright red that could hypnotize the strongest into a blank stare.

"So, how do you open it?" asked Sensei Rodan.

Zakee looked back at his Sensei and said, "I think I heard that only Jedi can open them. It has to do with the Force and all that." Sensei Rodan nodded as he signaled Taylor, Sarah, and Clayton to come on over. The three of them pushed and shoved until they came up to Sensei Rodan and Zakee.

Looking at the lot of them, Sensei announced, "You four have been called to the briefing room for a synopsis of your mission. They want the details, names, powers, and the whole nine yards, so don't hold anything back. Alright?" He received a unanimous nod from everyone. He turned towards the hallway and led everyone down to the double doors at the end.

Over the loud speaker, the secretary announced, "All who are taking part in the Novice Battle Royale, please come to the training room at once. Again, all who are taking part in the Novice Battle Royale, please come to the training room at once. Thank you."

When Sensei Rodan heard this, he looked over his shoulder towards Zakee. "You're going to want to check out this battle royale when y'all finish. We have some talented new recruits."

Zakee looked up and said, "I don't know about today. This mission made me really tired."

They were almost at the door by now, and Sensei Rodan said, "Fine. Suit yourself." He threw the doors open, and the five of them walked in and surrounded a table.

Around the table sat seven other highly ranked officials. In the center was President Reed himself. On his right sat General Hall. The lead scientist, Dr. Rogers, sat to the President's left. The two past General Hall were Emma Austin, the Speaker of the House, and General Fox, the Salem academy leader. The other two on Dr. Rogers' side were Dr. Rich, the assistant to Dr. Rogers, and Janice Schmidt, the President's secretary. Sensei Rodan sat on the side of General Hall after saluting the President.

"At ease men and woman. Congratulations on your success. You might not know this, but your success has brought a moral boost for all soldiers and students and an expectation of success from everyone. Subsequently, making everyone else work that much harder."

The President began clapping for a job well done, and everyone else joined in. "However, we still have matters to attend to. Firstly, I want a detailed report on the assault of the caravan. Don't miss a single beat." Clayton, Taylor, and Sarah looked at Zakee cuing him in. He cleared his throat.

"We started with using the river that would provide water for my mist and water jutsus. I hid on the shore and used my Hidden Mist Jutsu when the caravan neared us…" Zakee continued with how the battle went. He talked about Clayton's multi shadow possession jutsu that he incorporated flames into. He talked about how Sarah used Kadabra to fight a Z-Fighter that had a scar over his right eye and burn on his shoulder. She used her Psybeams to render him and some other weaker opponents unconscious. He continued to tell about how Taylor was faster and more skilled than their two-swords style swordsman. Taylor butted in telling how he killed his opponent with a swift counter move. Zakee began again with his and Clayton's battle against their captain, how he was a strong Z-Fighter or maybe a Saiyan. They continued to how Sarah and Taylor were knocked unconscious, and how he and Clayton combined their wind and fire jutsus to finish off the captain.

Once Zakee finished, the room fell silent for a few seconds. General Hall was the first to speak, "Do you remember what the captain looked like?"

Zakee looked at Clayton and then back to General Hall. "He had short black hair and was very buff. Oh! He had a tattoo of a black hand on his back!"

The President looked down saying, "He's a part of the Nokmim of ISIS. Better known as the Black Hand. They are a group of their finest warriors, and by the looks of it, this captain was a bottom tier warrior of the Nokmim." Another pause filled the room. "You did retrieve the holocron, didn't you?"

Zakee had nearly forgotten about the red pyramid. He stuck his arm into his bag and pulled out the mesmerizing artifact. The members around the table widened their eyes in its splendor. Zakee noticed how General Fox twitched and rotated his shoulder because of his memory replaying how a masked Jedi stole a holocron from him a few months ago.

Zakee walked the holocron over to the President and put it in his hands. After a few seconds of analyzing the holocron, President Reed handed it over to Dr. Rogers, who put it in his pocket.

"Thank you for your time and more importantly, your service. Thank you." The President saluted the four soldiers then sent them out of the room.

Once the students had left the room, Dr. Rogers looked to the President and General Hall and said, "We need a Jedi to open this, and none of ours are strong enough to do it."

The President stood up and spoke out saying, "Be patient. The time will come when our Jedi will be able to open them effortlessly. However, for now just train the students to optimize our success rates. That is all for now. There is a battle royale between a multitude of our new recruits. Feel free to go watch and observe." All the officials that surrounded the table, except for General Hall and Sensei Rodan, got up and left the meeting room.

Sensei Rodan looked at the President and said, "Sir. I think that the new recruit, Ryder Jace, has the best shot in opening the holocron. I'm aware of your concerns and I have been keeping an eye out on him, but he hasn't shown any sign of being a spy or traitor."

General Hall nodded then said, "I agree in the fact that Ryder Jace might be our best shot, but I'm not quite sold on that he is one of ours."

"Thank you for inputs. I agree with both of you, but I'm still not sure of his allegiance as well. Let's keep observing for now. As long as that holocron stays in our possession, there is no need to rush this." The President stood up and nodded at his officials. "Now, there is a Royale going on now, and I'd like to see how the future of our army looks." He left the room through the two double doors and headed towards the large training room.

Zakee and the three others were walking to the elevator to go to their rooms when they heard loud footsteps coming down the hall. They turned around to see Sensei Rodan sprinting their way while having a hard time stoppings. The four of them side stepped as the Sensei slid right into the back of the elevator. He got up surprisingly quick and said with his hands up, "I'm fine. Don't worry about me."

Zakee looked at the others as he could barely hold his laugh in. "I just wanted to tell y'all something. Right now, it would mean a lot to the recruits and other soldiers seeing you four at the Battle Royale. They all know that you four are tired, but it would spark their fighting spirit and help them perform to the best of their abilities." He took a few more deep breathes still catching his breath from his crash. "Do it for me."

Zakee threw his hands in the air and said, "Fine! I'm not speaking on their behalf, but I'll go. By the way, you are terrible at guilt tripping people." He began walking towards the arena as he heard the others grumble and complain behind him.

They reached the arena and stood at the top behind a plexiglas wall. Students lined the stands and the Plexiglas wall where Zakee and the others stood. The announcer was another student that was known for having a loud, exciting voice.

A few moments passed before they heard him yell out, "And there goes another contestant! There are only five left! It's between a ninja, a Z-Fighter, a Jedi, a Devil Fruit user, and a Shinigami!"

They were all aligned in a pentagon shape waiting for someone to make the first move. Zakee couldn't see all the faces of the fighters, so he did not pay that close of attention to the fight.

Suddenly, the Shinigami sprinted towards the Devil Fruit user and engaged in fight between swords. "That Shinigami's name is, Murdoch. He's a recruit that shows great promise in his abilities. The Devil Fruit user is Zolzo, and he ate the Dice-Dice Fruit, which gave him the ability to turn any of his body parts into a blade. Oh! The ninja there, Josh, can use fire and earth style jutsu that have been keeping all the fighters on their toes." Sensei Rodan was getting excited as he pointed out each of the contestants.

As he said this, Josh rushed towards the Jedi ready to use taijutsu against him. Josh started with a leaping attack that seemed to have missed the Jedi because he landed just in the out of bounds perimeter line. Josh followed this attack by launching himself towards the Jedi with a series of punches, kicks, and other jumps that would hopefully catch him off guard. However, the Jedi patiently waited for an opening during his defensive hand-to-hand combat series, and analyzed each attack.

After the Jedi dodged another kick, Josh followed it with a straight ahead right-hand punch, but the Jedi saw this coming. He turned, grabbed the arm and threw him in the direction he was heading. While in mid-air the Jedi then force pushed him into the side of the arena.

"The ninja, Josh Sanders, had been disqualified for leaving the fighting grounds! Only four remain!" yelled the announcer enthusiastically.

Zakee was now interested in how this royale was going to end with the exciting announcer commentating and the interesting fighters.

Sensei Rodan noticed this and said, "You see? I told you it was going to be awesome!" Zakee ignored his Sensei as he continued to watch.

The Z-Fighter, Dirath, had been charging an attack ever since Murdoch, the Shinigami, rushed Zolzo, the Dice-Dice man.

"Special Beam Cannon!" yelled Dirath as he extended his arm towards Murdoch and Zolzo. A yellow beam with a yellow and purple coil shot from Dirath's finger tips, and it soon crashed into the ground where Murdoch and Zolzo were fighting. The blast knocked Murdoch out of the fighting zone, but Zolzo was heavy enough to where Dirath only knocked him back about ten yards.

"Dirath knocks Murdoch out with his powerful Special Beam Cannon! Will Ryder and Zolzo be able to defeat his strong attacks?!" The announcer was fully devoted to being the most enthusiastic person in the whole country, and it made others invest in the fight that much more.

While the announcer was speaking, Zakee was turned towards Jackson asking if he knew how to perform the Special Beam Cannon.

Meanwhile, Zolzo had begun to attack Dirath since he had used up a significantly large portion of his Chi in the last attack. Ryder joined in by using the Force to redirect the stray Chi blasts toward Zolzo who wasn't expecting them. The blasts hit Zolzo in his side and sent him towards the boundary line, but he never crossed it. Ryder used the Force to dash towards Zolzo and was there in an instant. When he arrived by Zolzo's side, Zolzo quickly got up while trying to slice Ryder's legs with his arms that were swords. Ryder jumped and flipped over to Zolzo's backside. Upon landing, he drew his lightsaber and slashed Zolzo across his back. Since Ryder was using a training lightsaber, the only injury that Zolzo sustained was a small cut that ran across his back.

"What a knock out attack! There are only two fighters left! The Jedi and the Z-Fighter!" The whole crowd were now on their feet. This was the first real fight they had seen since arriving at the academy. Only Zakee, Clayton, Sarah, and Taylor had seen or experienced combat until this tournament.

The two were the only fighters left in the battle royale that originally had fifteen contestants. They danced around the inner part of the fighting zone until Ryder dashed towards Dirath with his lightsaber ignited in one hand. Dirath began sending chi blasts after chi blasts in the direction of Ryder. Ryder used the Force to deflect the chi blasts and continued going straight towards Dirath. Ryder slashed his lightsaber horizontally aiming for Dirath's waist but missed. Dirath had jumped back and then began charging up his Special Beam Cannon again.

"This is it! The two are out of energy and are down to their last attack! It all comes down to this!" The announcer was nearly falling out of his booth at this point.

Ryder had a focused glare in his eyes as he was calculating his next move. He deactivated his lightsaber and hooked it to his belt. He widened his base and readied his defenses.

"Special Beam Cannon!" yelled Dirath as he sent his beam towards Ryder's chest.

Using the force, Ryder pushed as hard as he could against the beam. The reason he didn't use his lightsaber was because he wanted to finally test his Force abilities on a chi blast after reading the physics of them so many times. He continued pushing harder and harder than the second before that; however, the force of the Special Beam Cannon was making Ryder slide back towards the out of bounds line. Dirath was still pushing on his side, surprised that Ryder stopped his beam. For Ryder to push the beam back all the way, he had to push a lot harder than what he was now doing. He strained his head as he continued building up the Force. He felt it course through his body like blood through veins. He felt it go down through his arms, and instead of it coming out of his palm, the Force came out of his fingertips.

Flashes of light started to become visible as Ryder kept pushing harder and harder. "Look! Zakee, do you see this," Rodan yelled to Zakee!

Zakee paid closer attention to the struggle between the Force and Dirath's Special Beam Cannon. In-between the beam and Ryder, little currents of lightning were starting to become visible. "He's using the Force to create lightning… Incredible!"

Dirath had never felt such a presence on the other end of any of his finishing chi blasts. As his arms began to get tired, the strength of the beam decreased as well. 'Shit,' thought Dirath.

Ryder noticed this fault and put his all into this final push. However, when Ryder released his full strength on the beam, lightning streams visible to the naked eye filled the gap between the beam and Ryder. The power behind the lightning and force was too tremendous for Dirath to fight back against, so he cut the beam and jumped to the side.

Ryder was prepared for this move. He knew that Dirath would either take the attack head on or dodge to one of the sides.

Ryder directed his lightning into the ground sending up debris and dust, but Dirath was ready. He sent a few powerful chi blasts straight ahead.

Zakee saw the chi blasts fly through the debris creating holes in the dust that allowed him to see through to the other side of the dust.

However, once Dirath could see through the dust, he noticed that Ryder wasn't there!

Ryder saw Dirath send a chi blast straight ahead and knew his chance was now. He gathered the Force and sprinted around the dust cloud and towards Dirath with incredible speed, and before Dirath could even turn to his left, Ryder had sliced his lightsaber into Dirath's stomach sending him into the wall and unconscious. Ryder inhaled deeply while he deactivated his lightsaber. It was over. He won the tournament.

"That's the end! Ryder has won the Rookie Battle Royale Tournament!" announced the announcer. The crowd blew up in excitement.

Zakee could not believe what he just heard. Did the announcer just say, Ryder?! He had heard him say that name a few times before, but two and two just clicked in his head.

Zakee turned towards Sensei Rodan quickly and asked, "Wait, what is that Jedi's last name?"

It took Rodan a few seconds to remember, but he finally said, "Oh, I remember! It's Jase. Ryder Jase. Why?" Before Sensei Rodan could lift his head, Zakee was sprinting towards the fighting zone.

'How on Earth did Ryder make it to this academy?! What had he been doing for the past two years?!' thought Zakee as he ran to Ryder.

Zakee made it down to the middle of the fighting zone and kept his eyes on Ryder as he gave people high fives for winning the tournament.

"You son of a bitch…"

Ryder looked up to see who said that and couldn't believe his eyes.

"You crazy bastard!" Ryder yelled with a face full of excitement.

Sensei Rodan was right behind Zakee during this whole introduction. He poked his head around and asked, "Wait, you guys know each other?"

They turned towards him and Ryder said, "Yeah! We went to high school together and were best friends then."

Sensei Rodan nodded his head then said, "Well, it seems like you two have a lot of catching up to do. I'll leave you to it. Oh, Ryder, when you're finished, you'll be wanted in the briefing room too." Ryder gave him a quick thumb up and turned back towards Zakee.

"So, tell me what you've been doing for the past two years, Ziggy!"

Zakee (Ziggy was his nickname in high school) began talking about how he was one of the first soldiers to try out the Roxy that Dr. Rogers had built. He talked about his adventures here and all that he learned. Ziggy then introduced Ryder to Jackson, Clayton, Taylor, and a few other people. They started to talk about Ziggy's latest mission and how he did against the ISIS captain.

"Hey, Ryder! I can't believe you did it man!" Nero was sprinting down the walkway ready to jump on Ryder. "Hahaha Murdoch isn't too thrilled, but that's only because he lost."

Ryder laughed and then introduced Nero to Zakee and his friends. "Hey, this is my friend Nero. We fought together when we were deployed, and it's kind of funny how we both ended up here together." They all started talking about their past few days and how its' been at the academy.

A screech came over the intercom as Mrs. Janice announced, "Can Ryder Jase please come to the briefing room. Thank you." *Click*

Ryder turned towards everyone and said, "Well you all can't get all of the winner's attention." He turned and headed towards the briefing room where he knew at the least General Rodan was waiting there.

He walked in through the double doors that led to the briefing room and stood at attention when he saw the President and General Hall. "At ease, Ryder. Congratulations on your win earlier; it was truly impressive. I wasn't aware that you were able to use Force Lightning. How long have you been able to do this," asked the President?

Doctor Rogers paid close attention to see if Ryder would be lying or telling the truth. "That was my first time, sir. I'm not even fully aware how to do it again," said Ryder.

Dr. Rogers gave a nod to General Hall.

"Anyways, based upon your skills that you've displayed while here at the academy, we feel that you are ready to construct your own lightsaber," continued President Reed.

Ryder smiled just a little trying to hold himself together.

"You will take a ship, along with a General or highly ranked official of your choosing. However, General Rodan must stay here to teach all the other students; many rely on him." Ryder didn't want any other General to go with him on this trip. He had grown close to General Rodan since he had arrived, and he enjoyed how much time Rodan dedicated to him even though he wasn't a Jedi too. Someone else began to stand up at the table.

"I'll join Ryder on his mission," said a crackling voice. Dr. Rogers was the one that volunteered himself to go with Ryder. "It will serve as a good way for me to record details about the other planets and what's on them. This way we can prepare for anything if we need to go to one of them," said Dr. Rogers.

No one talked for a few seconds until President Reed said, "Okay. That will be fine. Go ahead and start your preparations."

Suddenly, Jerry, a small time worker for the president, said frantically, "Mr. President, twelve unidentified aircrafts have entered our zone!"

Outside the walls of the academy, twelve large ships were closing in on the academy. On the training grounds were at least one hundred students training with each other or solo.

Guy Lightfoot stopped his swords and looked up. "I didn't know that we were expecting that many more recruits. Cause damn, I don't think we can fit all of them." After he said that he could see a light coming closer and closer to the academy.

"What the hell?" he mumbled.

That light flew right by him and just missed the academy by a few hundred feet. It hit the ground and the explosion sent a shock wave that knocked most of the students down. A ball of fire rose into the air and formed a mushroom type of cloud that continued to rise into the air.

Guy didn't know what to do. Out of all the training that he had put in, this was the one thing he never expected.

A red light began flashing on the side of the academy, and the President's voice played over the speaker system. "We are under attack! Repeat, we are under attack! Prepare for battle!"

Guy stood there, frozen in fear. He thought to himself, 'I don't want to die. Not here. Not today.'

Zakee, Jackson, Taylor, General Hall and Fox, and others began rushing out of the academy to face the upcoming threat.

Inside the briefing room, the President made Ryder and Jerry stay there while everyone else left to go outside. "Okay, I am giving you a very special mission. You two CANNOT fail this mission, because if you do, the ISIS Empire will know everything that we have studied, collected, and much more." Jerry and Ryder nodded.

"Ryder, you will be escorting Jerry to the archive center." The President pointed to a hologram that appeared above the briefing table. "A transit, at the lowest level of the academy, will take you there. Once you get there, teleport as many of the artifacts, scrolls, and books to this location." The President handed Jerry a piece of paper that had longitude and latitude coordinates on them. "I am the only person that knows that location. I want you to teleport me to my private ship about a mile out, so that I can go to Detroit. I am going to bring as many cruisers here as possible, just in case things go poorly. Ryder, I know you don't have a legit lightsaber right now. You'll just have to use a training lightsaber and your Force abilities for now. When y'all get to the archive center I want you to teleport them to this locations." President Rodan gave Jerry a piece of paper that had numbers that corresponded to a longitude and latitude of another location.

I'm confident that you will do just fine. Now, go ahead and teleport me and good luck to you both." Ryder and Jerry looked at each other and then back at the President.

"But sir," Ryder spoke out, but the President cut him off.

"There is no time for buts. This is a mission in which you have no say in. There are people outside fighting for their lives, so we all must get a move on with what we must do!" Ryder nodded.

"Okay, close your eyes Mr. President, or else you might get sick," said Jerry.

President Reed closed his eyes as Jerry put his hand on his chest. Suddenly, the President was gone.

"It's time to get a move on, Ryder. Do you have your lightsaber?" asked Jerry.

"Yep. Let's go." He responded.

Comment to let me know what you think of this story. I hope you enjoy!

May the 4th be with you…

~Aldon


	12. Chapter 11: The Battle for the Academy

Please support the original releases of the anime that I've used. I do not own any of this content. Enjoy!

**Chapter 11: Battle for the Academy**

Ryder and Jerry were running down one flight of stairs after another just wishing the bottom would arrive faster.

"How far does this go down?!" Ryder was starting to get out of breath. 'For going down stairs, this is hard work,' he thought.

"I think we're almost there. It shouldn't be much farther if I remember correctly," replied Jerry as he turned down another flight.

Outside, an epic battle was happening all around the academy. All the students were locking their swords or other weapons with other ninjas, soldiers with demon weapons, other Shinigami, and fighters with different powers.

On top of the academy stood Murdoch Sletvig. "Let's see how they deal with this…" He opened a book that was inside his jacket pocket and began to read a stanza.

"Ye lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws. Hido 33: Pale Fire Crash!" Blue fire and energy discharged from Murdoch's palm and was sent towards a few of the enemy ships. The power of this attack was frightening for others to see. It looked like six currents of the concentrated flames flew towards the ships with incredible speed. One of the currents collided with the body of a ship causing a decent explosion, but the ship kept moving.

Nero looked up at Murdoch and said in a mumble, "That damn bastard always going over the top." He dodged an incoming punch and said, "Don't you know its rude to interrupt someone talking!" He slipped down and kicked the legs out from beneath his surprise attacker. With great speed, Nero kicked his enemy, while he was still suspended in the air, into a group of attackers heading his way.

"Pentachromatic Strings!" yelled Nero as he swiped his right hand across his body. The group on enemy soldiers that were running towards him all flew backwards as Nero's strings sliced across their chests inflicting deep wounds.

On the largest ship, a man stood in the bridge looking out onto the battle field. "Hmmm. There are some formidable opponents here. Why don't we have some fun?" He turned around and began walking to the exit of his ship. Behind him followed five other soldiers draped in dark robes.

Zakee was locked in combat against a swordsman. He jumped backwards while performing hand seals and yelled out, "Water Style: Water Shark Blast!" A shark made of water that was in the air formed in front of Zakee then launched itself towards the swordsman making a large explosion. Zakee saw that his opponent was dead, so he turned and looked at the ships where he could feel a stronger power.

On the top of the ships stood six people. On was in front of all the others, and Zakee immediately knew that he was the leader.

A large amount of pressure was suddenly felt by everyone on the battlefield. Some of the students even fell to the ground. Everyone turned their gaze to the man on the ship who was standing there with his arms crossed and eyes closed. He had a white complexion and long black hair. He opened his eyes and stretched his arms out to his side.

"I am Khilor! The right hand of his Majesty, Lord Delshad Wakeman, the Emperor of ISIS! Many of you have promising power! However, I promise you that no one comes close to my own! If you surrender now and come to my ship, I will spare your life, and you will achieve great power under my leadership! Now, come!"

The pressure was lifted off everyone. No one moved a muscle. They were either terrified or their muscles wouldn't respond to their own commands from exhaustion or fear.

"Don't do it! He will kill anyone that goes over, or he will just use you!" yelled General Hall trying to persuade his turning students.

One of the figures behind Khilor leaned forward and whispered in Khilor's ear saying, "If you show a fraction of your power, they will come." The figure took a step back to leave Khilor to his own thoughts.

"You're right, Valak," said Khilor. His eyes turned red as a weird design appeared.

'The Mangekyo Sharingan,' thought Valak. 'I wasn't expecting him to use this.'

Zakee stared at Khilor as he felt him building up his power at an incredible rate. "Everyone! Brace yourself! He's about to attack," he yelled!

Forming the ram hand sign, a blue aura swirled around Khilor and went at least twenty yards in the air. The aura quickly took the form of skeleton cloaked in this blue aura.

"This is my Susanoo!" yelled Khilor. The arms of the skeletons drew out two swords and held them outwards. "All that do not come over will die!"

He sliced through the air with one sword. The strength was so incredible that the shock wave cut off the top floor of the academy. The top part that was cut off immediately vanished as it was turned into rubble and dust.

After the sight of the Susanoo and how powerful it is, students began laying down their weapons and walked towards the invading ships. One by one they entered and a loud snicker could be heard by all the enemy soldiers on the battlefield.

Zakee performed a series of hand seals and said, "I Won't let you do this! Wind Style: Rasenshuriken!" He threw the Rasengan that had been morphed into a shuriken at Khilor.

Khilor noticed it and scoffed at the attack. One of the Susanoo's swords vanished into thin air, and it raised up its hand to receive the Rasenshuriken. When the two connected, an explosion of blue aura blocked anyone from being able to see the Susanoo.

"See," yelled out Zakee! "He isn't invincible!"

"What a weak attack compared to my Susanoo," yelled out Khilor. The smoke from the explosion faded, and the Susanoo seemed unharmed.

"All new soldiers, stay on the ship until we exterminate the weak that fight back!" With many students walking towards the ship with shattered hope, ISIS soldiers resumed their fighting against the remaining academy students.

Down below the academy, Ryder and Jerry finally made it to the bottom of the stairs. The end of the stairs connected to a hallway about the size of the same hallways that lead the students to their rooms on the upper floors of the academy. Steel plates lined the walls with weird designs in the middle of each panel that were the same steel blue color. They looked a lot like the common Vera Bradley design that covered luggage bags, noticed Ryder.

Down at the end of the hall stood a metal door with an American flag painted in the middle. On the wall, next to the door was a mounted keypad with a small display screen used for opening it.

Jerry looked at Ryder, who was still taking in everything, and said, "Well, we should hurry up and start packing up everything in the archive."

Ryder just nodded and followed Jerry to the keypad while he was feeling the designs on the wall. Jerry entered a long phrase, and a green light began to flash, signaling that he got the code correct.

The metal door slid up into the ceiling and another metal door appears right behind the first. However, this door had a hand scanner mounted to one side of the door. Jerry walked up to it and placed his hand within the suggested hand placement area. A bar of light ran from the top of the scanner to the bottom, making sure the fingerprints match the record Jerry has with the government.

A robotic voice from the panel said, "Welcome, Jerry."

The door slid up and revealed a few book shelves filled scrolls and books that looked like they were either new or come from the stone age. The sizes of the books varied from the size of a pinky finger to the size of a head. Ryder walked over to a bookshelf and started sliding his finger across the binder of the books and the top of the scrolls.

Up against the wall, three stands stood supporting three holocrons on top of them. The first one was a red pyramid that exerted a pressure that was strong enough to make someone weak fall to their knees. The middle stand held a square, blue holocron that radiated a calm aura. The last holocron could very well be the same as the first because of the color and the pressure it exuded.

Ryder walked over to Jerry, who was grabbing baskets from the corner of the room, and said, "This place is incredible. I wonder why they didn't let the students access it? Well, I guess the fact that a traitor disclosed our location to the enemy answers that question."

Jerry handed Ryder a basket and said, "This archive is only accessible to the higher ups. It contains knowledge that is incredibly valuable."

Ryder walked over to the book shelf and began unloading all the books and scrolls into the bin. As he was packing up the material, Ryder came across simple books that described physics, math, and other common text books. The books that really stood out to Ryder were: _The Book of Whills_, _The Murder of a Whole Clan, and The Physics of Spirit Energy_.

"You can read those later, Ryder. We really do have to hurry with this," said Jerry in a frantic rush.

"I know. I know," responded Ryder. He continued putting the books into his bin.

It took the two of them about ten minutes to get all the books on the shelves into the bins that now lined the floor. Ryder was putting the last book into the bin when he heard a soft whisper.

He couldn't make out what the voice was saying, but it was calm and gentle. He could feel a warmth fill his body that eventually gave him a chill that ran up and down his spine. He reached out with the Force to find the whisper, and he noticed that it was coming from the first red holocron. He glanced over at Jerry to make sure that he wasn't watching his every step. Jerry was focusing on putting the last few books into their bins and getting them ready for teleportation.

'This is what's been trying to talk to me,' questioned Ryder to himself. He walked over to the three columns that supported the holocrons and now stood in front of the red holocron that sat to the left of the blue holocron. Ryder closed his eyes and took a deep breath.

He opened his eyes with conviction and grabbed the red holocron. He could hear a loud humming coming from it when suddenly, it spoke.

The voice was confidently calm, yet terrifyingly strong at the same time. "Learn from me… Obtain my knowledge…" The temptation was too strong for Ryder as he closed his eyes once more, but this time he focused on the holocron and opened it with the Force.

Jerry heard clicks coming from the direction where Ryder stood, so he turned and saw what he was doing. Jerry yelled out, "Don't do it! They'll know we're here!"

It was too late. The corners of the holocron were rotating and coming off the square as bright flashes of red light illuminated the room. The corners, now suspended in mid-air, stopped spinning and hovered next to the holocron. A male with a weird, golden mask, chest plate armor, and black and purple robes appeared as a hologram above the opened holocron.

"I see my holocron has finally been discovered," said the figure. "You are the only one that has listened close enough to find it. I do not have long, but I am the Sith Lord that began the rule of two, the destroyer of The Brotherhood of Darkness, and the creator of the Order of the Sith Lords. Many decades have passed since I was 'killed' by my apprentice. I do not possess the same strength as I did back then as well. Now, I am in search of ancient knowledge that dwells in the outer rims of this galaxy hoping to achieve eternal life. However, before I left, I hid my lightsaber on the barren, desert planet of Korriban. Go there and find it. That lightsaber has great power due to it being my weapon of choice for the destruction of anything that came in my way. The crystals inside know destruction. They crave it. Listen for its calling. If you do not, then you will never find it. There is another holocron on that planet that I have only heard, not seen. Sith holocrons are red and contain a dark, heavy presence, and Jedi holocrons are blue with a light, peaceful presence to them; however, this one was different. It was purple, but had the shape of the typical pyramid holocron. The presence of the holocron is what threw me off the most. When I was searching a cave, it called out to me in an ancient language, one that I had never heard of. The presence was incredible, and I could tell that it held ancient knowledge and wisdom. I could not find it inside of that cave. Every route I took led me back to the entrance, and that was when I knew that it was not for me. I have never come across a holocron like this. The source of that holocron is what I have been looking for ever since I recovered from my fatal wound. If it wasn't for the orbalisks, I'd be de—"

He was cut off as the sounds of voices and blaster fire echoed in the background. The man in the holocron looked behind him for a moment then turned back towards the holocron and said, "That is all that I can say for now. Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me."

The image of the Sith Lord fizzled out of sight. The holocron dropped to the floor, and its corners began to turn into dust. The bright lights that had filled the room earlier had vanished and the old lights now light the room.

Ryder looked at Jerry and began explaining, "Before you say anything, I had no idea that that holocron had a one-time access limit to open it. At least that's some pretty good information about other artifacts and his lightsaber." Jerry gave Ryder a look that made Ryder's stomach sink to the ground.

He grabbed the other holocrons and began packing them into a bag. "Not only was that classified information that the President should've seen, but I felt a huge rumble from the building. We need to get going too," reemphasized Jerry.

Up above, the battle was still being fought with more and more casualties happening for the Americans. Organized barrages of fire balls were landing hits after hits and not many students had the proper training to counter the other attacks.

Zakee was leading one faction of the army with his Hidden Mist Jutsu. Zakee was not use to long, drawn out fights where he had used up all his chakra with in the first ten minutes. He had now been fighting for thirty minutes, non-stop. He couldn't stand the fact that a large amount of his fellow students and even friends betrayed their comrades and chose to side with the ISIS Empire. This feeling of anger and betrayal was the only thing left fueling his body to let him continue fighting.

From a distance, he heard someone yell out, "Lightning Style: Thunderclap Arrow!" An enemy ninja was in the air with lightning collected in his palm. He threw it down towards Zakee, but he had enough time to prepare for his own counter.

Zakee finished his hand signs and said, "Wind Style: Demon Gale!" Three wind gales surged towards the other ninja's lightning jutsu. The first wind gale canceled out the Thunderclap Arrow due it being lightning's weakness, but the second and third wind gale connected with the target sending him back into the rocky ground, unconscious.

Standing on top of his ship, Khilor and his close subordinates stood proudly as they watched the battle. He could see that the majority of the Americans were on the defensive, and the battle would be over shortly. He focused about three fourths of his concentration on where General Hall was and how he fought. The other quarter of his concentration was focused on his surroundings, making sure that he would be able to sense reinforcements; that is if they would come to their rescue. He was studying the patterns to General Hall's technique as he was fighting with his cursed sword. Khilor quickly deduced that he had very linear attacks.

Suddenly, from the bottom of the academy, he felt a great power pulse. He had felt this power once before. It was when the Americans had ambushed their mountain base. This was the same energy of the person that collapsed the entire mountain. But, there was another presence as well. He felt the calm nature of it, and the powerful pressure it emitted.

'That damned mercenary opened a Sith holocron,' he thought.

Khilor turned towards one of his subordinates that stood behind him. "I need you to blow up this academy, so I can have access to the tunnels beneath it."

A smile appeared the face of one of Khilor's subordinates as he said, "You know nothing would make me more happy." He walked in front of Khilor and outstretched his palm. Purple energy began to build around his hand.

The fighting stopped as everyone noticed that one of Khilor's right hand man was about to attack. After a few seconds of building energy, the subordinate unleashed the accumulated energy with a powerful blast of purple energy. It met the academy with a large explosion a cloud of smoke that blocked the sun.

When the dust settled, the entire academy had been reduced to rubble and dust. Whoever that man was, he leveled the entire building. Khilor jumped in a direct line towards the now exposed stairwell and landed right next to it.

Zakee stood in awe of the attack when an enemy Shinigami attacked him with his Zanpakto. Zakee pulled out his katana and infused it with his wind chakra making his sword sharper and longer.

Shinigami were always hard for him to beat because of their large and powerful swords. He fended off attack after attack while he looked for an opening, but one never came. Instead, he was being pushed back and could barely keep up with this Shinigami. The enemy swordsman kicked Zakee's legs out from beneath him and immediately swung his sword down towards Zakee's stomach.

Right before the Shinigami made contact with Zakee, another blade stopped the foe Zanpakto. Zakee could tell that it was a katana like his own, but much stronger. He rolled out of the way and stood up to help whomever saved his life. General Hall was the one fighting this tough Shinigami. The Shinigami leaped backwards and held up his hand in the direction of General Hall.

He began reciting, "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and —" Before he could finish his recitation, General Hall was behind him in a flash and stabbed the Shinigami through the abdomen.

General Hall slid his sword out of his foe and told him, "You talk too much."

He walked over to Zakee and gave him a pat on his shoulder. "You're doing great out here, but I think it's time to sound the retreat. Mr. President just contacted me saying that he will be here within a few minutes. Can you make some sort of wall that can withstand most of these attacks, so we can get away?"

Zakee nodded quickly. His face showed a sign of relief. He was happy that he would finally be able to catch his breath, but he knew the battle was not over yet. "I'll need Luca and Clayton for this wall," said Zakee.

"Do whatever you can and grab whoever you need. Also, try and do this when Khilor is distracted. It looks like he's about to jump down into the tunnel that leads to the archive, so do it when he's down there. Hopefully, Jerry and Ryder have already teleported." General Hall saw Zakee nod in agreement, so he left to go rally the remaining soldiers and prepare for an escape.

Khilor could feel the power coming from the room down the stair well. He took and deep breath and said to himself, "It's time for my revenge." He jumped off the ledge and began falling towards the ground of the hallway beneath him.

Right after Khilor jumped, Zakee, Luca, and Clayton prepared their selected jutsu to form this wall.

Suddenly, a loud noise came from their left. On the horizon and closing in at remarkable speeds were two large commercial ships equipped with turrets and other weaponry that was opening fire on the ISIS soldiers and ships.

The three of them looked at each other and performed their jutsu in this order. First, Zakee yelled, "Water Style: Water Wall Jutsu!" A stream of water started to come out of his mouth with tremendous force. The wall grew to about fifty feet in height and stretched for a good distance.

Immediately after the water wall formed, Luca said, "Ice Style: Protective Ice Dome!" Suddenly, the water wall began to freeze in place and the water in the air began to freeze as well creating a wall of ice between them and ISIS.

Finally, Clayton yelled, "Earth Style: Great Mud Wall!" He began projecting mud from his mouth with insane pressure, and once the mud hardened, a giant wall of rock and earth lined the inside of the ice wall.

"Everyone! Retreat to the incoming ships! Let the walls protect you right now," yelled General Hall as he was directing all the students to where the two ships were descending. The ships finally landed and opened the cargo hatch for everyone to get in. General Hall got in the opposite ship as the President so that a strong leader was on each ship. Zakee, Clayton, Luca, Jackson, Taylor, and a few others were helping every last student to get on board the cruisers.

Right when they were getting ready to jump on the ship, blasts of fire, lightning, and other attacks that could break through the wall began getting by the broken ice or earth.

"Let's go! We have to go now!" yelled Jackson to all the others, who agreed. They split up into two groups and jumped onto the ships. Right when the last person on each ship entered, they pressed the button to close the hatch. This also let the pilot of the ship know that they were ready to go. The ships started to gain altitude and slowly began moving forward.

Zakee was looking out of the window at the wall that was now falling down due to the amount of attacks that had been thrown at it. He turned to the communications unit on the wall and called up to the cockpit. He told them, "We have to get out of here now. If we don't, they'll be able to shoot us down." He kept staring at the wall until he heard a response.

"Roger that. We are picking up speed now," said the voice over the communications unit. The distance between them and ISIS was increasing dramatically. Their thrusters were working on max thrust to get them into outer space as quickly as possible.

He picked the microphone back up and asked the cockpit, "Why isn't the other ship following us to space? Isn't it still dangerous down there?"

The response came quickly, "They are meeting at the rendezvous spot to pick us the archive collection along with Jerry and Ryder." Zakee knew it in his heart that of course Ryder was doing something this risky when he doesn't even have a proper weapon.

Khilor landed at the bottom of the stairwell with ease and barely made a sound when he hit the bottom. He slowly turned to where the hallway would take him, and he saw two males squatting next to one last bin of books and scrolls. Down the hall he heard someone say, "You've got this, Jerry. This is the last bin, and then it's just us."

Khilor recognized one of their energies from up above the ground. He knew one of them had to have been the mercenary that had destroyed his base that held many secrets and artifacts. He straightened up and began to walk slowly towards the archive room. He was focused one-hundred percent on the two males that were sending their archive off. Khilor did not care too much about the scrolls and books, but he was very interested in the one male that had the same energy signature as the mercenary.

After just a few steps towards them, Jerry used his teleporting ability to send the last bin away. By doing this, Khilor was able see that the energy Jerry used was different from the other. Therefore, he deduced that the mercenary was the male consoling the teleporter.

"Good job, Jerry. Now let's get out of here," said Ryder hoping to encourage the exhausted Jerry to get them out of there. Jerry was taking deep breaths trying to build up the amount of energy need to teleport two human beings. Ryder, who had already mastered Battle Meditation and Force Enlightenment to the point where he used them constantly, sensed that they were in trouble. A cold shiver ran down his back. He turned and looked towards the stairs and saw exactly what he did not want to see. Khilor was crouching and getting ready to rush them.

When Ryder turned towards the stairs, it caught Khilor off guard because he was a master stealth assassin that had mastered the art of silent killing. When the two made eye contact, Khilor just said, "You…" with an angry expression and dashed towards Ryder. He brought back his katana and sliced it at Ryder's neck delivering the kill shot.

He stood up and turned around to look at his victim, but they were not there. They had teleported away. Anger, rage, and hate filled Khilor. He unleashed his Susanoo and the whole academy building along with the earth beneath it collapsed on top of him, but his Susanoo protected him as he jumped all the way to the top. Seeing that their leader was furious. The five subordinates met him down at the bottom of the ship.

When Khilor made it to them, he said, "I know the identity of the man that made our base collapse and destroyed our schematics." Khilor kept walking towards his chambers with the others following behind him.

"Sir," spoke one, "were you able to retrieve any holocrons or texts they had."

With his Sharingan glaring, Khilor gave him a glance that made him drop to the ground while entrapped in a Tsukuyomi.

Opening his eyes, Ryder lifted his arm and felt his throat, arms, legs, and the rest of his body to see if he had made it in one piece. He could not believe it. He would be dead if it wasn't for Jerry. Ryder turned over and saw Jerry lying on his back next to a group of 13 boxes filled to the brim with books.

He stood up and went to check to make sure Jerry was okay, but before he could put his hand on Jerry's wrist to check his pulse, a hand grabbed Ryder's. It made Ryder jump, but he looked and saw that it was Jerry's hand. "I'll be okay. I'm just really fucking exhausted," said Jerry in a soft voice.

Ryder began to laugh as he reached for his bag to pull out his phone. Inside the bag, he felt the two other holocrons, and they made him think about the other holocron that he had opened earlier.

'Korriban doesn't sound too bad. At least it has something interesting there,' thought Ryder. However, he needed to get in contact with the President.

Ryder opened the untraceable phone and dialed the President.

"What bear is best?" answered a voice on the other end of the phone.

Ryder responded with, "Bears, eat beets. Beets, Battle Star Galactica."

A few seconds past before the other person gave a response. "Please give an update to your situation."

Ryder let out a large sigh of relief. "Jerry is wiped out, and we have the packages. I'm sending the coordinates now." He pressed a side button on his watch that transmitted his current location to a certain number.

"That's good to hear Mr. Jedi," replied the voice on the other side of the phone. Ryder hung up the phone and laid down on the ground.

'Where are we,' he thought. Nothing but desert surrounded them. On the horizon, a larger cruiser ship began to close in on Ryder and Jerry.

"Hey, Jerry! Our rides here," said Ryder shoving his exhausted comrade.

"You can load all of this. I've already done my fair share," said Jerry.

"I'm sure they have people that will do that for us," snickered Ryder.

The ship landed about a forty yards away from the, and a group of workers and medics ran over to them. A group of people got off the ship, grabbed the bins, and took them to the cargo hold. The medics on the other hand tended to only Jerry because of the shape he was in.

One medic looked up and said, "Ryder, Mr. President would like to speak to you as soon as you can get aboard the ship." Ryder was not ready to go tell him everything that happened.

'I just want to sleep right now,' he thought.

"I'll be there in any minute," responded Ryder to the medic.

He began to start walking back to the ship stretching arms above his head and letting out a great, big yawn.

_Hope you enjoyed the chapter! As always, comment to let me know what you think of the chapter!_

_ ~Aldon_


	13. Chapter 12: Life in Space

**Chapter 12: Life in Space**

Ryder and Jerry got on board the massive cruiser ship, the Slipknot, and made their way to the briefing room at once. Over Ryder's shoulder hung a satchel that contained the two other holocrons and a few books. He knew what was coming his way and boy did he dread it. The last thing that he wanted to do was tell how he had opened classified information and that it turned to dust once the message ended. All he wanted to do was sleep on the first bed that could find.

A voice came over the speakers and said, "Everyone, please stay still as we ascend into space. Once we clear Earth's orbit, we'll jump to mach speed and head for the outer rim of the solar system." Ryder looked around and saw a seat that could fold away from the wall.

"Over here," Ryder told Jerry as he pointed to the chair. The two of the walked over and strapped themselves in, ready for takeoff.

It took about an hour to ascend into space and jump into mach speed landing in the outer rim of the solar system. The closest original planet was Neptune, and that was about five-hundred thousand miles away.

The ship came to a stop and the speakers sounded again saying, "Everyone is safe to move about the ship, now."

Ryder and Jerry got up out of their seats. Jerry, still exhausted from all the teleporting, stumbled when he got up. Luckily, Ryder caught him because, if he didn't then his face would've had a nice meeting with the floor.

"I think you should just go rest in the med-bay if anything. We don't need you passing out just walking to the elevator," Ryder told Jerry. Jerry was so tired that his head barely moved when he nodded at Ryder.

The two made their way to the med-bay that was on the same floor as them, and Ryder helped Jerry get onto one of the beds.

Ryder looked Jerry in the eyes and said, "I'll tell them everything that happened, including the holocron. Just rest here and I'll tell you everything that they say. Unless, they call for you before I can come back." Jerry gave another nod giving Ryder the 'okay' to leave.

Even though the sight of outer-space is incredible, the view got boring once Ryder saw the same thing each time he looked out of a window. He liked seeing the sunrise and sunset over the desert surrounding at the academy. However, the white walls and lighted panels were a nice change compared to the girly design of the academy walls.

The air down this hallway smelt of hot oil and smoke produced from machines that sounded like they were either repairing ships or creating new ships and/or droids.

As he kept walking down the hallway, a droid screamed as it spun through an open door. Shortly after, a mechanic ran out the door and grabbed the droid. As he turned he saw Ryder staring in curiosity and confusion.

"A slight wiring problem, that's it," said the mechanic as he quickly returned to the room with the doors sliding shut after him.

The droid was a blue R2 series astromech droid that was missing a few front panels. Above the door where the two had re-entered was a sign that read, "Repairs." Ryder brushed off the encounter and continued making his way towards the briefing room. If he wasn't there soon, he knew Mrs. Janice's voice would come over the intercom and ask for him.

Ryder came to the elevator and pressed the up button and waited for the elevator to arrive. He couldn't get the planet of Korriban and the final words that out of his mind.

'How'd it go,' he thought?

He closed his eyes and thought back to the man from the holocron. He finally remembered.

"Peace is a lie, there is only passion. Through passion, I gain strength. Through strength, I gain power. Through power, I gain victory. Through victory, my chains are broken. The Force shall free me."

Those sentences echoed in his mind until he heard the bell of the elevator sound off.

The doors opened and showed a girl that was about five feet and six inches tall. She had brown hair that extended a little way past her shoulders and had hazel eyes. Her had a bronze complexion from her tan. She had a thin head band around her head to keep her hair away from her face. She was wearing a white shirt that had 'ICE COLD' written in red letters on it. It was cut off right above her belly button. Black leggings covered her legs down to her calves and a belt with hide pouches hung around her waist. However, the weirdest thing of all were her high-top white converse that just seemed out of place on a military cruiser, especially since she looked like a mechanic.

Ryder walked into the elevator and pressed the very top button that had the number, seventy-four printed on it.

The girl, who was looking down at a device that resembled a phone, made a comment saying, "Wow, just who am I in an elevator with? There aren't many times that I'm on the elevator with someone that's going to the top floor too."

Ryder looked at the girl who was still looking at her phone and said, "I just have to report to a few things about what happened out there today."

He leaned his back against the wall, let out a deep breath, and looked up at the wall. "What're you doing on that phone thing?" asked Ryder.

A bystander would be able to tell that she had been asked this question multiple times before hand because of the sigh she let out. "I'm using a software to re-program a droid's hard drive. His basic motor functions were entered incorrectly by a newbie mechanic." When she said "newbie," she shot Ryder an annoyed look and then went right back to her phone.

"Is it the blue R2 astromech droid that spun out into the hallway just a few moments ago?" said Ryder with a slight laugh at the end.

"You can bet your ass that it is. That droid has only been a pain in my ass since it has gotten on this ship. I just feel bad for whoever has to pilot a ship with that thing controlling the ship's system." She finished her programming and put the device in her pocket.

She looked over at Ryder, who's eyes were closed and head pointed to the ceiling, and saw his in-tact clothes. "Aren't your clothes supposed to be torn up after a battle?" she said.

Ryder turned towards her, opening his eyes and said, "My job wasn't on the battlefield. I had to teleport everything out of the archives." Ryder showed her the satchel that had a few different books in it.

The elevator came to a stop and the doors opened quicker than he had expected. He turned away from the girl and looked straight ahead. Around a circular table sat President Reed, General Hall, General Fox, Doctor Rogers, Doctor Rich, Secretary Janice, Speaker of the House: Emma Austin, Sensei Rodan, and a few other teachers.

Ryder walked towards the table and the girl followed closely behind him. The President was the first to stand as he said, "Well done, Ryder. You and Jerry did an exceptional job retrieving every artifact in the archive library. You have earned every bit of appreciation from everyone around this table."

He paused as everyone began clapping. Confused and shocked, the girl began clapping a little later than everyone else. 'Who is this guy,' she thought?

The President sat back down in his chair. He continued, "However, there is a holocron missing. A Sith holocron. Do you mind explaining what happened?" All eyes were on Ryder. He knew that the higher officers thought that one of the students was a mole for ISIS.

'They can't possibly think that I'm the mole because I opened a holocron,' thought Ryder.

Right after that thought, he noticed Doctor Rogers put his elbows on the table as he rested his mouth and chin on his folded hands.

Ryder looked at the President and began to recall what happened in the archives.

"We were down in the archives packing all the books and scrolls into bins for a mass teleportation. We were close to finishing the books and scrolls when I heard a loud humming. I assumed it was the Force because Jerry hadn't noticed it. I followed the noise and came upon the holocrons behind the book shelves," Ryder paused. With a single gulp, he said, "It spoke to me…"

Ryder redirected his stare to Sensei Rodan who was sitting there with a straight face. "It was a telling me to learn from it. To gain its knowledge… It was a calm, warm voice, yet terrifying at the same time. So, I opened the holocron and a man with a large mask and black and purple robes appeared. He told me that he left his lightsaber on the planet, Korriban. And that there is a holocron there that is different from all the others. It's a purple one. The man could never find it; he could only hear it call to him through the Force. Once the recording was over, he vanished and the corners of the holocron began to turn into dust. It had a limit of opening only one time. Jerry realized that when I opened the holocron, it would release a surge of power. Something strong enough to alert the invaders where we were."

General Hall leaned over to the President and whispered something into his ear.

"So," continued Ryder ignoring General Hall. "We quickly packed the rest of the texts and holocrons. Right when we finished, one of the attackers showed up and dashed towards us, but he wasn't faster than Jerry's teleportation. We barely escaped with our lives. That's when we ended up at the coordinates that you gave us. I swear. I didn't know that it was a one-time holocron, and all he mentioned was his lightsaber and the holocron that are on Korriban. You can ask Jerry to confirm it."

Ryder was out of breath from telling the story. It had been a long time since he had seen action that made his heart race that fast. He looked back at the President waiting for him to say something.

President Reed looked over at Doctor Rogers, who gave him a subtle nod. Returning his look upon Ryder, he said, "Don't worry, I. No, we believe you. We have also realized that you have come to the same conclusion as us about a student being a mole for ISIS. If it was you, we most likely would have been ambushed at the coordinates that I gave you."

President Reed stood up and walked around the table and put his hand on Ryder's shoulder. "Now, after that mission, I'm sure the only thing you want right now is to rest." The President felt Ryder's shoulder relax when he heard the word "rest."

Taking his hand off his shoulder, he stretched out his hand. "Now, the satchel, please," said Mr. President.

Ryder slung the satchel off his shoulder and handed it to the President. He looked inside the bag to make sure the books were the real deal. President Reed proceeded to take the books out of the bag saying, "Well, what are these? Form Two: Makashi." He gave the book to Ryder. Ryder grabbed the book, surprised that he wasn't keeping them. Most books in the archives were off limit. Only a master or a training droid (proxy droid) could teach the skills and techniques found in those books. He pulled out the last two books and continued, "Form Four: Ataru. And the last book, Form Five: Shien / Djem So." President Reed gave the last two books to Ryder. He now had the three books he placed into the satchel in his arms. He was relieved to know that they would let him study these without the supervision of a master or proxy.

"Keep these. Study them," the President said.

Ryder saluted the President and said, "Thank you, sir."

"At ease," said President Reed. "I expect you to be fluent with these forms in no time Ryder. Don't let me down."

Ryder smirked at the President and said, "I'll have them mastered before you know it." He was excited to learn new lightsaber forms because the more forms he knew, the better the warrior he would be. He kept the books in his hands as he held them by his side. Ryder looked at the President and awaited any further orders.

President Reed went back to his seat and sat down. He lifted his hand, signaling General Hall to take over the meeting. He glanced away from the President and stared at the girl that was standing next to Ryder.

"Katie," he said. "What's the status of all the single-pilot ships and their droids?"

She quickly straightened up and responded saying, "We have twenty-six X-Wings, fifteen Y-Wings, twelve A-Wings, and two Delta-7s. All ready for takeoff with their own astromech or utility droid available."

General Hall put his head in his palm. "That damn surprise attack ruined a lot of things and our star fleet was one of them," he thought out loud.

He followed up with another question, "Do we have any light freighters available?"

Katie took her phone-like device out and opened an app that kept inventory of all the ships. After a few seconds of scrolling through her files, she looked up and said, "No, sir. The Scimitar, the ghtroc 720 (aka the Phantom), and the Outrider have busted thrusters, hyper-drives, and other problems with their engine systems. All the others have malfunctioning engines. However, I should have them all in working condition within five months at the most." Everyone around the table wrote down the available and broken ships with their estimated time until availability.

General looked up at Katie and asked, "Do you need any more help down in the shop?"

This was the question that she had been waiting a long time for. She looked up at the ceiling and then back at General Hall and President Reed saying, "Well, now that you mention it. A few more extra hands wouldn't hurt, and it would speed up the process by a few weeks, hopefully."

General Hall began writing on his notepad as well. When he finished writing, he stood up and saluted Ryder and Katie, who mimicked the General's salute until he put his hand down. "That is all for now. We will contact you if we need anything. Also, Katie, keep us updated with the progress of the light freighters." The two nodded in synchronization then turned and walked toward the opened elevator then got in.

Katie pressed the button that had "6" on it, and Ryder pressed the 'Close Doors' button repeatedly until the doors finally shut. Ryder let out a deep breath of relief and looked towards Katie and said, "I hate those meetings."

She looked back at him with an expression that said, you got that right. "Every time I go in that room, they always ask me about the ships that happen to be broken. I'm literally one of seven mechanics that work on all these ships."

Ryder could tell that her workload was stressing her out. Her face was just like his on the way up to the briefing room. Her face was looking at the ceiling even though her eyes were shut.

Ryder lifted up the books and noticed a small envelope poking out of the pages. All it read was, 'Your room: 2835.' He leaned forward and selected floor twenty-eight and waited until they reached that floor.

As the doors opened, he turned to Katie and said, "Well, it was good to meet you, Katie. Even if it was under chaotic circumstances. And if you need any more help down there, I'm not that bad of a mechanic either." He smiled and began walking out of the elevator and to his room.

When he was a few steps out of the elevator, he heard her say back, "Will do, mister holocron thief." Ryder chuckled and kept walking down the hallway towards his room.

His room was about halfway down the hall on the left. Now that more than half of their army had betrayed them and joined ISIS. Everyone got their own room.

Ryder reached his door and opened it. Inside were two twin beds. One against the left wall while the other was on the right wall, and each had its own nightstand to accompany it. In the middle of the wall that was in between the two beds, was a descent sized window that allowed the view of Sadala and other planets that were now close by. On the opposite wall of the window was a big dresser. Big enough for two fully grown men to fit all their close and more into it.

Ryder put the books on top of the night stand, took off his boots and shirt, then fell on the bed just wanting to sleep. He laid there for about five minutes until he could feel himself drifting off into a deep sleep that was well needed.

Inside the other cruiser, the Vindicator, Zakee ran down to the hanger where General Hall, Sensei Rodan, Doctor Rich, and other officials were landing their shuttle from their other ship that sat right next to them.

The landing strip came down from the shuttle and the passengers began walking off. He waited until General Hall exited the shuttle and asked "Well, what happened?"

Without looking at Zakee, he said, "Ryder opened the holocron that you obtained. A Sith Lord appeared and told Ryder and Jerry of the location of his old lightsaber and another holocron."

Zakee stopped walking. His face lit up like a lightbulb. "That must be why ISIS attacked so soon. They really wanted that holocron back in their hands. That Sith's lightsaber and the holocron might be something we need to get soon," he said catching up to the general.

General Hall looked down at Zakee and said, "We are already thinking of a team and a way to get to Korriban."

Zakee kept walking with General Hall and asked, "Do we have any ships ready?"

There was a long pause. Zakee could tell the general was counting in his head. He looked at Ziggy, began walking again and said, "Our light freighters will be down until repairs are finished, and that can take up to five months at most. Other than that, we have a total of fifty-five X-Wings, A-Wings, Y-Wings, and Delta 7s. That shuttle is the only ship we have that can carry more than two people."

Ziggy kept walking with the General until they reached the elevator. When the general got on the elevator, Ziggy asked if there was anything that he could do. General shook his head and said, "The only thing we all can do right now, is train to get stronger. Train to bring back the friends you lost to Khilor today." The elevator doors shut, and Ziggy just stood there in thought.

He was still angry about all his comrades that deserted him and everyone else.

Ziggy walked back to his room going over the best jutsus he knew. "Water Dragon and Wind Dragon are the two strongest jutsu I know. I need to expand the variety of jutsus I can perform," he said to himself.

Ziggy took his phone out and called Sensei Rodan. The phone rang until Ziggy could hear his Sensei pick up the phone.

"Yes, Zakee?" asked Rodan.

"I need to expand the variety of jutsus that I can create," he explained.

Sensei Rodan responded in a calm voice saying, "I know that you want to save everyone that just turned their back on you, but over working your body when it hasn't gotten proper rest in a month will accomplish nothing. Get some rest first and then come talk to me. You can find me in the library right after lunch."

A moment of silence passed by until Zakee said, "Okay, Sensei." When Ziggy hung up the phone, he realized that he was back at his room.

Ziggy opened the door and walked over to the bed on the right side of the room. He stripped down to his boxers and slid under the covers. He closed his eyes and quickly fell asleep.

Up in the briefing room of the Slipknot, President Reed and Doctor Rogers were discussing strategic plans for getting back Earth and even just finding a remote planet to settle on.

"So, Korriban is in-between the two suns," reiterated President Reed. "I wonder what that holocron holds. I've never heard of a purple holocron before," he continued.

He looked over at Doctor Roger whose hand was rubbing his forehead. Dr. Rogers removed his hand from his head. Looking at the President, he said, "I have a theory about this holocron."

Reed's eyebrows raised as he leaned over the table, ready to listen.

"So," continued Doctor Rogers. "A Sith holocron is red because the Dark Side, which was used to make them, is fueled by anger, power, aggression, and other evil emotions. The same goes for Jedi holocrons. The Light Side of the Force make them, and what fuels the light side? Peace, love, calmness, and emotions that promote unity. The things that these two have in common are that: they are made by an exclusive organization and the color of the holocron reflects the emotions used to make them."

President Reed leaned back in his chair, waiting for the final reveal of this theory.

Doctor Rogers spun around to a computer and typed in while he said, "What does purple represent?"

The first article that popped up was exactly what he was looking for. It was titled, 'The Symbolism of the Color: Purple.' Rogers clicked on the link taking him to the article.

"So, this says the meaning of the color purple could represent: royalty, nobility, power, ambition, creativity, wisdom, dignity, devotion, peace, pride, and/or mystery." He paused and waited for his train of thought to catch up.

"This organization could be an ancient group who believe that they embody every word I just read off. There wasn't a clear division between if they're principles are inherently good or evil, but we can assume that they are not afraid to wreck chaos and terror throughout the galaxy if need be. This is all that I can come up with at this moment." When Doctor Rogers finished, President Reed stood up and walked to the window and stared out into space.

He turned back around, looking his top doctor in the eyes, he said, "I don't like this. We just lost more than half of our army, our home planet, ISIS has multiple SS ranked powers that they are not afraid to use, we are currently adrift in space like sitting ducks on a pond, and now, news of mysterious organization appears out of nowhere."

While the President paused, Doctor Rogers quickly replied saying, "Mr. President, we just need to take this one step at a time, and don't need to do anything that might pose a large risk right now. We will have to make risky decisions later, but we must not make rash decisions that put the whole fleet in danger."

President Reed covered his face with his hands and let out a deep breath.

"May I suggest something?" asked Doctor Rogers.

President Reed lifted his head and told Dr. Rogers, "Go ahead."

"I think we need to allow any B ranked soldier and above to read anything inside the archive. Shoot, if you're a ninja, read books on demon weapons if you want. This way each student will understand the strengths and weaknesses of any future opponent. This also means forbidden texts for ninjas, Shinigami, and any other power that might have locked secrets. Holocrons are included in this as well. There are only a few Jedi in our company, but I believe that Ryder Jace is ready to learn the secrets within them. This way, our soldiers will know secrets that the enemy won't know about. We can use that to our advantage. Most importantly, I think that when the ships are out of repairs, we send Ryder, along with a team of qualified students," said the doctor before he got cut off by the President.

"First off," he said. "They are no longer students. They are now soldiers for the United States of America. The mole did this to them. Second, how do we actually know if Ryder is or is not the mole. He's quite skillful and I feel like he would have an easy time hiding this."

"You're most certainly right," said Doctor Rogers. "My power allows me to dive into the mind of another. All I need to do is, go inside Ryder's mind and check out his memories."

President Reed leaned back in his chair and said, "I feel dirty for not trusting one of our own, but we need to find out if he even is one of our own. I like your idea, Rogers. We'll talk more about that later. So, what was it you were saying about sending him to Korriban?"

Doctor Rogers nodded then continued, "We can assemble a strike team that will assist Ryder on his quest to obtain that purple holocron and lightsaber." Doctor Rogers leaned forward in his chair and waited for the President's answer.

"I like your plans, Rogers," said President Reed as he reached down and pulled out a pen and pad. "First things first, we need to create a list that ranks every soldier we have."

Doctor Rogers walked over to a file cabinet and began pulling files out that contained battle information on a large portion of their current soldiers.

President Reed walked over to the phone and dialed, "six-four-two-one."

Inside the briefing room of the Vindicator, Sensei Rodan was asleep with his face on the table. Right next to him sat General Hall, General Fox, and Doctor Rich all asleep with their faces smeared on the table as well.

Suddenly, a loud, continuous ring began to echo off all the walls. Rodan jumped to his feet quickly as he dazed out of his dream.

"Somebody get that damn thing," yelled General Hall!

General Fox looked up at Rodan and pointed him towards the terminal that had the phone.

Rodan trudged over and saw that the time was five in the morning and whispered to himself, "Who the fuck calls at five in the morning?"

He picked up the phone and said, "Hello?" as he exhaled a yawn with that word.

"Rodan, this is Reed. I need everyone awake and alert. Drink some coffee or do whatever, but I need everyone focus and ready to go within twenty minutes. Give me a call when y'all are ready." Before Rodan could respond, President Reed hung up the phone. Rodan placed the phone back on the terminal as he yawned once more.

He then turned towards the other officials that were partially asleep on the table and said, "Well, that was the President. He sounded excited, or anxious, and in a rush, but he wants us ready and focused in twenty minutes for some sort of meeting, I guess."

No one moved at all.

"I really don't want to have to do this, but here we go… Fire Style: Five." Flames engulfed Rodan's hand as he moved it towards the ass of every official in the room to wake them up.

Within twenty minutes, everyone had a cup of coffee and were now on their next one. Rodan looked at the phone and said, "Any minute now." A few minutes passed and then they heard the phone ring.

General Hall picked up the phone and held it up to his ear and said, "Mr. President, we're ready."

"Good," responded President Reed. "Let's get started then."

_Thanks for reading and as always… I hope you enjoyed!_

_ ~Aldon_


	14. Chapter 13: Who's the Rat?

**Chapter 13: Who's the Rat?**

It has been three days since the departure from Earth. Life in space was a lot more interesting seeing it on a movie screen instead of real life. The past two days had been more of a relaxation period for everyone aboard the Slipknot and Vindicator than days of training.

The only people that were training were the ones that didn't need an instructor to guide them due to an absence of every high-ranking officer. According to some people aboard the Slipknot, they saw a large group of officers head up to the briefing room about sixty-three hours ago, close to three days, and they hadn't left yet.

Rumors floated around the two ships saying things like they were coming up with a way to surrender without casualties, or they found the mole and are torturing him to get intel. Ryder didn't care for any of the rumors. He figured that they were just thinking of a strategy of what to do next.

Unless he was sleeping in his room or eating in the diner, Ryder was constantly in the library reading his new books on lightsaber forms. He thought that he should just read them in numeric order, so he began with "Form Two: Makashi."

He had already finished reading the whole book from cover to cover; it wasn't very long. Ryder flipped back to the opening page to review the basic principles of this form.

The opening line of the book was a quote that summed the form up well. "Makashi is a technique that helps the user resist the Force attacks of an enemy, and is also excellent for lightsaber combat. It does more damage, but it leaves you vulnerable to other attacks. Use it against others wielding the Force or lightsabers, but not against anyone else." This quote came from a Jedi named, Kreia.

The book further said that the form served as a counter to Form One by relying on precision swords play to counter Form One's sweeping movements. Ryder made a mental note of that. The more he studied the movements and steps of Makashi, the more he felt as if it was an art form the way the user had to keep balance while parrying and maintain footwork. The only downside to this form was the lack of momentum. Since Makashi focused on precision using jabs, parries, and light cuts, it prevented the user's ability to generate momentum in both offensive and defensive maneuvers.

Ryder felt his stomach growl, telling him that it about time to eat. He looked down at his watch and realized that it was two hours past the designated lunch time, and hopefully, the serving droids hadn't cleaned up the food yet. He closed the book and put it in his backpack that had the other two books in it as well. The Form Four book was a bit thicker than the Form Two book, and the Form Five book was even larger than the Form Four book.

After he zipped up his bag, he ran straight to the dining hall. He ran down the hallway and took a quick right where a sign that read, 'Cafeteria – This Way' hung from the ceiling. The dining hall's double doors were the only doors on the right side because of how large the room was on the inside. He busted through the double doors looking around for something to eat. The only thing he saw were droids cleaning the tables, so he went into the kitchen area hoping that they would have some leftovers.

"Hey, do y'all have any more food. I got side tracked and missed the normal lunch time," he told one of the droids.

The droid didn't stop staring at him as if Ryder just ruined his day. The droid finally turned around and made his way to a heating box.

"Stupid Jedi can use Force powers, but they can't keep track of time. What good are magic abilities when you don't even know what time it is," questioned the robot in a sassy manner?

It opened the door and pulled out a plate that was loaded with mac 'n cheese, lima beans, and a Cheeseburger with lettuce, a slice of tomato, and two strips of bacon. Ryder's eyes lit up as he saw the robot head towards him with that hot plate. This was by far the highlight of space so far. Three of his favorite foods all in one meal.

Ryder reached out and grabbed the plate disregarding how hot it was and yelled, "Thank you!" as he scurried to one of the tables. Ryder could sense the robot rolling his eyes, that is, if it had any.

He sat down and took the saran wrap off the plate and began chowing down on the delicious food. As he was eating, he noticed how dead this whole ship was. The only thing that was going on was the constant work in the mechanic shop and a few classes that were still going on for the people that weren't very skilled with their power yet.

Ryder missed having his friends around. He missed Nero and Ziggy the most, but he knew that they wouldn't be able to come over to this ship until the officers finished using the shuttle. He wondered what they were doing over there. If they were training, just having fun, or even relaxing to keep their minds stress free.

The majority of the soldiers were on the Vindicator because that was the ship that everyone got on when they left Earth. The only people that were on the Slipknot were the mechanics the President brought from the shipyard in Detroit and the novice soldiers that didn't have enough knowledge or experience in the power to fight Khilor's army that invaded.

Ryder finished his burger and began thinking about his Force abilities. 'I haven't honed my Force abilities in a long time,' thought Ryder.

He closed his eyes and reached out with his mind. He opened it to the flow of the Force. Ryder heard the racket of hammers hitting nails, welding torches burning through steel, and droids whistling back and forth to one another. He heard the creaks in the ship that showed its age and experience in space battles. He listened closer as he could barely hear a group of people speaking. Ryder listened closer and noticed that what he was hearing was the meeting between the high-ranked officials.

He heard someone say, "Okay, did we miss anyone on the list?"

A reply came quickly as he heard a familiar voice say, "No, sir. I've checked the list twice. Making sure we didn't forget anyone."

Suddenly, the voices stopped.

Ryder concentrated harder to see if they had begun to whisper or what was happening. That's when he heard a voice in his head. It had a weird accent that was recognizable by the first word.

"You better stop listening to this meeting. You can get into serious trouble if others knew what you were doing. The meeting will be over soon, so please just stay out of it." The voice stopped. He knew it was Doctor Rogers reading his mind. He must've been able to tell that someone was using a power to listen in on them. They sure do seem very cautious right now, but damn, I don't blame them at all.

Directing his thought to Doctor Rogers he said in his head, "Yes, sir. Sorry about that. I didn't realize it was y'all until you said something."

That was the end of their conversation.

Ryder opened his eyes and what he saw nearly made him jump out of his seat. Katie was sitting on the other end of the table just staring at him as if he just asked the most stupid question ever. Ryder was surprised that she even snuck up on him while he was listening to just about everything through the Force.

"I'm assuming that you were just using the Force," she said. She continued before Ryder could say anything, "You know, you make some strange faces while doing that. Whatever it was." She carved away part of an apple's skin and took a bite out of it.

"How long have you been here?" asked Ryder.

"Long enough to get a full series of strange facial expressions," she said with a laugh.

"Well, those were because Doctor Rogers just caught me trying to listen to their meeting up in the briefing room," said Ryder as he ate a fork-full of mac 'n cheese.

Katie perked up when Ryder mentioned the three-day long meeting that was happening up in the briefing room. "So, are you going to tell me what they said?" asked Katie.

Ryder looked around to see if anyone was nearby. "Don't worry, I won't tell a soul," she said as she raised her pinky with smirk.

Ryder raised his pinky and finished the pinky promise with her. "Okay, I heard someone say, 'Did we miss anyone on the list?' Then someone else responded saying, 'No, sir. I've checked the list twice. Making sure we didn't forget anyone.' Come to think of it, I'm pretty sure the second voice was Jerry. It sounded a lot like him."

Katie made a disappointed face and said, "But what about that list? What's it for?"

She was right. Ryder hadn't even thought about what that list could be. "I'm not sure," he said and then continued, "It could really be anything."

Ryder ate some more mac 'n cheese and even offered Katie some, but she turned it down. "No worries, that's more for me," he said.

Ryder was about to stand up and put his plate at the dishwasher window, but the intercom sounded. It started with a screeching sound. Ryder looked at Katie and said, "I think this is it."

"Can I have your attention please. Everyone, please pay attention."

There was no doubt in Ryder's mind that this was Mrs. Janice, the intercom queen.

"This takes priority over anything else right now. Just so everyone knows, this message is being transmitted to both the Slipknot and the Vindicator. This message also pertains to the long meeting that President and his board have been having. Here is, President Reed." A quick shuffle of the microphone was heard through the speakers.

"Hello, everyone. President Reed here. Three days ago, we were ambushed at our own academy. Our home. A location that only we knew about. We are sure that the target of this ambush was the holocron that one of our teams had retrieved from an ISIS convoy earlier that week." He paused and swallowed a sip of water. "Along with the destruction of our academy, the army's numbers have dwindled significantly. We had one-thousand, four-hundred and forty-eight students, but now we are reduced to only six hundred and twenty-one. The eight-hundred and twenty-seven friends and students abandoned us and left with the enemy. However, due to the attack, everyone left here, is officially a soldier for the United States of America. No matter our skill level, we will All, including myself, fight for the country we lost. Since our number have dropped significantly, we can no longer try and beat ISIS with numbers. I'm sorry for all of this. We MUST beat them through strategy and skill. In our meeting, we decided to let soldiers, with a rank of "B" and above, research and read anything that we retrieved from our archives. We used the ninja ranking scale to determine your rating, and from bottom to top, the rankings go as follows: 'D' rank for Genin, the 'C' rank for Chuunin, the 'B' rank for Jounin, the 'A' rank for Anbu, the 'S' rank for Kage, and finally the 'SS' rank for Beyond Kage. There will be no limits on what you will be able read. All we ask is that you use this opportunity wisely and do not take it for granted. If you do not qualify as a B-rank soldier, do not worry. With practice and the honing of your skills, you will be able to reach it in no time. Don't get me wrong, this will not be an easy journey for those who are under a B-rank, but the reward is well worth it. The job of those learning from the archive is to teach what they've learned to others as well as mastering it themselves. Now, listen up. We are going to begin reading off the names who have qualified, starting with the highest rank."

Ryder gave Katie a nervous look because he hadn't really shown anything impressive besides winning a battle royale full of rookie recruits.

"Due to the size of the archive room, we will only be able to admit a certain amount of soldiers into the archive at a time. Now, to begin. First, we will start with the S-rank soldiers. Starting off we have, General Hall, Doctor Rogers, Sensei Rodan, and Jerry. Now, for the A-ranked soldiers: Zakee, Jackson, Taylor, Sarah, Clayton, Murdoch, Ridley, Pierce, etc…"

President Reed must've named off at least twenty people in the A-rank classification, but Ryder never hear his name called. He expected this. "Next are the B-rank soldiers. Starting them off is: Nero Slosslane, Bryce Garcia, Tucker Houston, Guy Lightfoot, Katie Harrison…" Katie was nodding her head in excitement. She was ready to see if there were any tips when it came to repairing ships quicker and many other ship related topics.

The speaker continued, "Drex, Daisey Toller, Zolzo, Radak, and Ledru. Everyone else can look on the board posted outside of each dining hall to check out their personal ranking. However, there is an exception to the rule for those that have proven themselves in other ways besides combat. We have acknowledged their efforts in what they did in other fields as well as their own potential with their power. These two soldiers will have access to the archives as well." President Reed paused to drink some water.

Across the table, Ryder could see Katie crossing her index and middle finger on both hands. Ryder joked at her saying, "You know, crossing fingers on both hands is bad luck."

All she said was, "Oh well. Looks like you aren't one of the exceptions then." Ryder laughed as President Reed started up again. The two C-rank soldiers that qualify are: Dirath and Ryder. Everyone who's name was just called, please meet in the dining hall in the ship that you are currently on. We will have the commanding officers of both ships debrief y'all on the rules of the archive. To the soldiers that did not qualify, continue to learn from your teachers and train. Also, please don't be afraid to ask the other soldiers to help you with your training. Don't forget, all qualifying soldiers meet in the dining hall immediately. That is all, thank you." The intercom went silent.

"Bad luck my ass," said Katie, finishing her apple.

Ryder got up and walked over the dish washing window and sat his plate and silverware on the counter. Walking back to his seat he said, "However, I do blame you for everyone meeting in this room."

She replied saying, "That doesn't make any sense. This means we don't have to go anywhere, so no work for us!"

Ryder couldn't argue with that, so he nodded in agreement. Katie was fun to hang around, Ryder began to think. And, she isn't that bad looking either.

The doors began to open and in came a group of a little less than ten soldiers. Katie moved to the seat that was right next to Ryder to get a good view of the presentation. She leaned over and whispered to Ryder, "Do you think that these are all that qualified on this ship? Only seven?"

Ryder nodded and said, "Yeah. A lot of the soldiers that qualified are fighters, and they are on the other ship. I bet their Dining Hall is packed full of people. How many people did he call out?"

Katie began to think back and said, "It had to be around sixty or so. It wasn't too many because everyone has to be able to fit in the archives."

The soldiers came in and found a seat. The doors opened again and in came President Reed, Doctor Rogers, and Jerry. There was an open seat next to Ryder, so he signaled Jerry to come sit by him.

When Jerry sat down and greeted Ryder and introduced himself to Katie. Ryder could notice the dark bags under Jerry's eyes from the lack of sleep while they were compiling this list.

"Holy shit," said Ryder. "How much sleep have you gotten since we've come aboard?" Jerry pointed to the President who was about to begin as he said, "Not much, my man."

The President stepped forward and started off the debriefing meeting. "First off, I'd like to say thank you for your service thus far. It has been a hard week. We've lost friends in battle and through betrayal. However, we are not going to cower in the face of adversity. If you really care about your friends that are now a part of ISIS, then do anything and everything that you are capable of to get them back. This is a main reason why we have started this. So that we will be strong enough when the time comes for us to take back who we love and the land we love."

The President began flipping through a notebook that he had walked in with. "There are some rules and guidelines that you must follow to keep your archive entry status. Rule number one: under no circumstance are you to take any artifact or text off any of these two ships. That means no taking them on missions. This is for the safety and protection of the artifact and yourself. Rule number two: along with being able to learn the knowledge held in the archives, you must be willing to teach the others in what they are currently learning and when the time comes, about what you have learned as well. The third and final rule: LEARN ALL that you can. If you have any interests what so ever, search for it within the archives. Hopefully we will have what you desire, but if not someone else might now what you want. When you leave, Doctor Rogers will get your hand print and do an eye scan. That is how you will be able to get into the archives. Any questions?" President Reed looked at the small group and saw that no-one raised their hand. He concluded with, "Alright, you are all dismissed once you get your hand and eye scanned."

All ten of the soldiers stood up and formed a line behind Jerry who was getting his eye and hand scanned. Ryder was third in line, after Katie.

President Reed walked over to Ryder and tapped him on the shoulder and said, "I'd like to speak to you once you get your hand and eye scanned."

Ryder straightened up and said, "Yes, sir. Do you mind if I ask what for?" He was a little nervous that he was about to get in trouble for listening in on their meeting about an hour ago.

"It pertains to your abilities," said President Reed in a serious tone.

"Next!" yelled Doctor Rogers before he pulled Ryder up to the scanning machine. "Place your hand on the flat scanner and your head into this frame."

The frame was a single bar attached to an adjustable microphone stand so that the height didn't matter. Beneath this bar was an orange pocket that you had to line your eye up with. It resembled glasses in an odd way, only with one lens though. Ryder placed his hand on the scanner while he leaned into the frame and lined his eye up with the orange pocket.

While staying still, he asked Doctor Rogers, "Does the President know about me hearing a bit of the meeting?"

Doctor Rogers leaned down and whispered to Ryder, "He does not, but in return for my secrecy, I will need you to do a favor for me."

That sentence sent a shiver down his spine. Ryder felt like he was talking to the devil himself now. Ryder spoke again, "Just to get the record straight. I didn't purposefully try and listen into the meeting. Right when I heard what y'all said, you took over my thou—."

Ryder was cut off by Doctor Rogers as he said, "I believe you, but with your track record of how fast you've picked up Jedi techniques, some people are suspicious of where your loyalty lies. It would be troublesome if they got a hold of what I know."

Ryder, knowing the scanning was complete, looked up at the doctor and said, "Okay. I accept the terms. Call me when you need me."

Doctor Rogers smile, pushed Ryder towards the President and yelled, "Next!" for the next qualifier.

Ryder walked over to President Reed and said, "Yes, sir?"

The President turned and said, "Ah, Ryder. Yes. Walk with me for a moment."

The two exited the Dining Hall and walked past Jerry, Katie, and few other people who were talking about the archive, but stopped when Ryder walked by with the President by his side.

"The reason I wanted to talk to you, is because that you are the only Jedi we have that has been able to open a holocron." Ryder's face went back with shock because of the random topic.

"When we heard you say that you opened the holocron that called out to you, we were all shocked. Master Jedi such as our own Jocasta Nu, Daisey Toller, and General Lance, the head master of our academy in Greenland, have not been able to open them. Throughout our meeting, my cabinet and I discussed this and couldn't come up with an answer. That's when it dawned on Doctor Roger. He was the only one that remembered that you had three symbols appear when you received your powers from our Roxy. However, you have only been a part of our academy for two months. Granted, since the beginning, you have picked up things quickly, but two months is an incredibly short period to have two lightsaber forms mastered as well as having another lightsaber form molded into your two mastered forms unknowingly. A lot of this is just hard to understand from our perspective. Can you shine any light on it?"

Ryder took a second to go over what the President said and to gather his own thoughts. "I honestly can't say why I have been able to pick up on these things at a fast pace. Whenever I see the lightsaber forms in the book, my body just seems to know the basics of them without practicing for a long time. I know this is suspicious," said Ryder. "But, trust me. I am not a traitor to this country. I served in combat for two years and even agreed to serve in this program to save the ones I love the most."

President Reed took a deep breath then exhaled. "That's exactly part of the problem, Ryder. We have records of you being in the army, sending in your application two years ago, and even sustaining a head injury while in Pakistan, but there isn't a single photo or video that includes you out there with the platoon that's reported on your file. When we asked the officers in charge and other soldiers about you, they all said that you were a brave combatant that would do about anything for them. They even gave us stories about you and your friend, Nero rushing into war zones, leading the other troops as y'all took out camp after camp. However, where your application is in our database. It's marked as reviewed, not admitted. You can see why we are skeptical, can't you? The lack of physical evidence and the issue with your application have a lot of officers questioning who you really are."

Ryder didn't say anything. He couldn't find the right words to say at that moment. "Originally, I wanted you to open the holocrons in front of me and a few cabinet members, so that we will all know what knowledge is contained in our other two. But, with these problems, people don't think that you should be present when they are opened. Now, I do believe you. It's just hard to for others to trust you as much as I do because if you were the enemy, I have no doubt in my mind that we would have never made it off Earth, but we did."

Ryder was thinking of a way to prove that he was telling the truth. Who would be able to look inside my mind that they trust enough and tell them that I'm not lying. Ryder felt dumb for not suggesting this earlier. Ryder spoke out saying, "Why don't y'all sedate me, and let Doctor Rogers go as deep into my mind as he wants. That way you all will get the truth from someone that every officer here trusts. If there is anything y'all want to know, just tell him, so that he can find the answer." Ryder thought this was a good plan to prove his innocence, and he didn't see why it wouldn't work.

President Reed smiled and nodded in agreement. "I like that plan as well," stated the President. "General Hall and Rodan, Doctor Rogers, and I came up with this plan as well, but for your sake, we wanted to you to come up with it as well to help you in your case." A silent pause crept into the conversation.

"When will this happen?" asked Ryder.

"I cannot disclose with you the time or place of this procedure due to implications of you possibly altering your memory for a specific location or time. Doctor Rogers will use his telepathy to communicate when the time is right. However, with this case against your credibility and loyalty in play, I cannot allow you to enter the archives until everything is cleared," finished President Reed.

"That's fine. I already have some books to read anyways," said Ryder holding up the three lightsaber form books.

President Reed smiled in amusement and said, "Make sure you get some rest tonight, and try to keep your mind clear, so that the procedure doesn't take a long time."

Ryder nodded and said, "Yes, sir."

The President gave a final nod and walked back towards the Dining Hall, passed it and got on the elevator. Ryder leaned against the wall and slid down to the ground.

'Why is this happening to me instead of someone that's legitimate suspect,' he thought?

Around a corner about fifteen yards away, stood Danny Granger. His hands were cupping his ears, so that he would be able to hear every single word. Danny had the power to heighten only one of his senses at a time, and for the past ten minutes, his ears could pick up anything in that hallway that he focused on. He had heard every single word said between President Reed and Ryder. He snickered and slowly walked back down his hallway and into his room.

Ryder stood up and began to walk towards the elevator. He needed to clear his mind, and the only thing that would do that would be practicing his lightsaber forms.

He got in the elevator with three other people. Two guys and one girl. He pressed the button that read "Five," and the others pressed the eleventh-floor button.

During the ride down the elevator, the three other students kept glancing at Ryder and moving away from him. 'What's wrong with these people,' he thought? He just kept looking forward and waited for them to get off.

When the elevator reached their floor, the doors opened, and they began to walk off into the hallway. Just before the doors fully closed, one of the guys said, "Traitor" masked with a cough just loud enough so that Ryder could hear it.

This made Ryder mad. Why did other students think this now? He didn't do anything about it because he knew that it would make things worse. He was ready to get this examination over with.

The doors opened up on the fifth floor, and no one was in the proxy, training room. Ryder liked being able to practice without anyone watching him. It made him feel like he could try new things without others assuming that he previous training with ISIS or that he's a traitor.

Ryder walked over to his locker and put on his training clothes. He had khaki colored Jedi pants, a brown training robe, and brown leather boots.

He used the Force to turn on a proxy, and it said, "Good afternoon, Jedi Knight Ryder. Accessing files titled, Ryder Jace." It took a few moments for the proxy to bring up his training files.

"What mode would you like to train with?"

Ryder gave a quick response and said, "Activate Djem So Training Module Number Three."

The proxy stood still and said, "Djem So Training Module Three is Force locked. Please insert key."

Ryder closed his eyes, and using the Force, he reached inside the proxy and began to lift five pads that were pressure sealed within five different cylinders. At first, they didn't move at all, and Ryder knew this. Only someone strong in the Force can lift the activation pads due to the extreme pressure pushing down on them. He felt anger build within him.

'How did that guy know about my case so soon after my conversation with the President,' he thought? 'How many people knew about it?' These thoughts only built up Ryder's anger, so he decided to use it to help him lift the pads.

Focusing on his anger, he used the Force to shove the pads up. Little by little, the pads began to rise quicker and quicker. A click came when all five pads hit the top of the cylinders.

The proxy took a few steps back and said, "Key accepted. Now beginning Djem So Training Module Number Three." The proxy's image slowly faded away and transformed into the image of Anakin Skywalker via hologram. Without saying a word, the hologram of Anakin, the Chosen-One, assumed his battle stance.

A confident, male voice took over the proxy's robotic, monotonous voice. As he was getting ready to lung towards Ryder, it said, "Don't underestimate me." His piercing orange and red eyes sharpened into a deadly glare.

He jumped towards Ryder with such speed all he saw was a blur with a blue light coming closer and closer. Anakin swung his blue lightsaber down onto Ryder's training lightsaber, but the training lightsaber was no match against Anakin Skywalker and his lightsaber.

_Thanks for reading! If you have any tips or suggestions feel free to leave a comment or message me!_

_ ~Aldon_


	15. Chapter 14: Subconscious Memories

I do not own any characters or concepts in this fanfiction. Please support the original releases.

**Chapter 14: Subconscious Memories**

Ryder stood up once more, bring his lightsaber by his side. A cut above his right eye caused blood to blur his vision. His left shoulder and back was sore from the continuous pounding it was taking from this Anakin Skywalker proxy.

'No wonder everyone feared this guy when he turned to the dark side,' thought Ryder.

Anakin said to Ryder, "You just don't know when to give up, do you?" His red eyes were burning with passion and hate.

Ryder smiled as he wiped blood out of his eye, again... "You just don't hit hard enough," replied Ryder as he ran towards Anakin.

Ryder began fiercely slashing, hoping he would land a hit somehow. He drew back his lightsaber getting ready to swing with all his strength, but he heard a voice tell him, "Be patient. Wait until you find an opening." He stopped his swing and changed to the Form Three fighting style permanently against the strong attacks that were coming at him.

He was blocking a lot more of Anakin's swings instead of being countered and then pushed back. Anakin lifted his lightsaber above his head to strike down on Ryder, but Ryder knew this was his opening. With a swift kick, Ryder landed a blow to Anakin's chest that made him slide a few yards backwards.

Anakin deactivated his lightsaber and stood up tall. His red eyes turned back to their original blue color that reminded Ryder of the ocean. The hologram disappeared as the proxy stood still.

Back to the monotonous, robotic voice, it said, "Djem Sho Training Module Number Three, complete. Final score: Anakin Skywalker with 58 wins to Ryder Jase's 1 win. Total time from first match: eight hours and thirteen minutes. Continue, or shut down?"

Ryder, bent over his knees heaving for air, smiled with satisfaction. 'Finally,' he thought. 'I finally got a single hit to land.'

Ryder stood up and wiped the sweat and blood from his face with his sleeve. The proxy restated his last sentence, "Continue, or shut down."

Ryder put his hands over his head and said to the proxy, "As if I'll go again. I might die on a legitimate note. Shut down, proxy." The proxy walked back to its charging station and hooked itself up to the charger.

Ryder walked over to his locker and opened it up. Reaching for his watch on the top shelf, he looked at the time, and it read, 'Ten forty-nine.' Ryder began to laugh a little. He found it funny how it took him over eight hours just land a single hit on the Anakin proxy. Ryder took off his shirt and walked over to the men's showers turning one of them on. He took off his remaining clothes and stepped in the hot water of the shower and began to relax.

Ryder stood in the shower for about twenty minutes before he began to shampoo his hair and bathe himself. He found out that if he activated his Force Aura while the hot water was still running, then the Aura would trap the heat, not letting him get cold when he stepped out of the shower.

He activated his Force Aura and got out of the shower to dry off. Right when Ryder finished putting on his pants and boots, a voice filled his head.

"Go ahead and make your way to my office, Ryder," said Doctor Rogers.

Ryder took a deep breath and let it out. "Yeah, give me a few minutes though. I'm down in the proxy training room and just got out of the shower," he said out loud forgetting that this was all in his head.

"I thought we told you to get some rest. I'm assuming that you've been down there for a few hours?" responded Doctor Rogers.

Pulling his white shirt over his head, Ryder said, "You wanted my mind clear, right? Well, now it is." Ryder put on his navy-blue gym shorts and Nike sneakers. He walked over to his locker and grabbed his gray hoodie that had a Nike swish across the front of it. He closed his locker and walked to the elevator.

The elevator's doors opened, and Ryder walked in. He pressed the button designated to floor, fifty-eight and leaned against the wall with his eyes shut.

Flashes of blue light swirled in his head as he pictured the proxy Anakin's attacks. Each attack that came his way, Ryder was trying to think of a way to either parry or dodge the attack. The image training continued all the up until the elevator came to a stop and the doors opened.

Doctor Rogers's office was the last door on the left side of the hallway, and in front of the door, General Rodan and General Hall were talking to one another. Ryder got out of the elevator and walked down the hallway towards the two Generals.

"I don't understand why all of this is necessary?" said Rodan.

General Hall tried to explain what was happening again, "Ryder understood that if he did this and nothing come back suspicious, then he'd be free to do whatever he wants to do. The only reason why this is going smoothly is because Ryder was the one to suggest this."

Neither of the two Generals had noticed Ryder walking down the hallway, let alone walking in-between them to get to the door. Astonished with how silent his whole presence was, General Rodan put his hand on his should and reassured Ryder that everything will be alright.

Ryder didn't feel as if he needed to say anything back, so he walked over the table that had five leather straps for his ankles, wrists, and neck. The table resembled one that was in a doctor's office. Lining the walls were chairs, and a television above the operating table.

He looked up and asked, "Where is everyone?"

As he finished the sentence, a door opened and out came President Reed, Doctor Roger, Doctor Rich, General Fox, and Mrs. Speaker of the House: Emma Austin. "Ah! Glad to see that you have made it on time," said Doctor Rogers as he walked over to the table with Doctor Rich following close behind him.

Peering into Ryder's eyes, Doctor Rogers began to explain the procedure. "This procedure will be over before you know it. I am going to inject you with some sleep medicine. Then, I'll go into your mind in search for answers or clues about your case."

"Let's just go ahead and start this," said Ryder in an emotionless tone. The amount of exhaustion he sustained from training made him close to a zombie. As he started to lay down, Ryder used the Force to strap himself in.

Rogers turned to Rich and said "Okay then. Rich, bring me the sleeping medicine." Dr. Rich grabbed a syringe full with a golden mixture and gave it to Doctor Rogers.

He flicked the needle and told Ryder, "This might hurt a slight bit," as he slammed the needle into Ryder's neck, injecting him with the sleep medicine.

Ryder's vision started to become blurred, and then everything turned black. Even though he was asleep, Ryder could feel Doctor Rogers wandering through his mind in search of secrets and answers.

Suddenly, Ryder's vision came back, but all he could see was Dr. Rogers's floating body mid-search in a white void. Surrounding him were a multitude of boxes, and one was labeled, 'Memories.' Ryder lifted his right hand to confirm that his body was still normal, but instead of his normal body, Ryder's body's looked blurry.

Ryder called out to the doctor, "Hey Doc! Doc!" Doctor Rogers didn't answer as he continued to rummage through old boxes that coincidentally had the word, "memories" written on the front.

Doctor Roger's pulled a metal ball out of the box of memories. This ball had a label on it that was made up of masking tape and sharpie that read, "First holocron." He tossed that aside thinking that it referred to the holocron that was opened beneath the academy. Dr. Rogers held the next ball in his hand a little bit longer. Ryder couldn't see the label, but he assumed that Doctor Roger was wondering was the memory contained.

Suddenly, Ryder's surrounding area changed from a white void to the sandy dunes and mountains of Pakistan.

The only thing in their vicinity was a small town that was around a hundred yards away from Ryder's squad. His squad consisted of three other people: Nero, Alex, and Josh. They began walking, as quietly as they could, to a house to check for ISIS soldiers that could ambush them.

They arrived at the base of the stairs that led up to the house, and Alex volunteered to check out the house first. He walked up the stairs and through the front door with his gun pointed in front of him. He scoped out the room and turned around to tell the others that the house was clear when an enemy insurgent appeared from behind a desk. It was too late for Alex as the enemy shot him in his back multiple times then ran and slammed the front door shut.

Josh's main weapon was a heavy machine gun, but he dropped it as he sprinted up the stairs in pure rage. He kicked the closed door down expecting someone to attack him. About five seconds passed before an enemy soldier jumped onto Josh and grabbed him by the neck. Josh threw the enemy off his body, but in the process of doing so, his gun slid across the room and stopped at the ISIS soldier's feet.

Josh knew that only two things could come from this situation: either he quickly dodges the bullets that his opponent would shoot at him and subsequently kill him, or he would get gunned down right where he was standing.

Ryder closed his eyes hoping that he wouldn't have to witness any of his memories that took place in Pakistan, but even with his eyes closed, he saw the memories even more vividly.

Josh jumped and rolled across the floor right before the ISIS soldier shot at where he was standing. After firing a couple rounds, the gun ran out of ammo, and the slide locked back into its open position. Josh pulled a bayonet out from his back pouch and lunged at the ISIS soldier who side stepped and avoided the attack.

They engaged in a fist fight while his target redirecting his bayonet stabs with his forearms, rendering it useless, until Josh nicked his arm. From that point on, it was a one-sided fight as Josh tore open the insurgent's face and chest with the bayonet.

Ryder had put this memory in the very far back parts of his mind for a reason. The mutilated bodied messed with his mind for a long time after that incident, and he did not like reliving it.

Doctor Rogers slowly put the orb down and mumbled a few words that Ryder couldn't make out. He continued searching for other memories, and Ryder dreaded what he might find. The next orb that he pulled out was labeled, "Gray." Curious what this meant, Doctor Rogers firmly grasped the orb and activated it.

The location shifted to a dark, dirt tunnel. Ryder didn't recognize where they were, but watched for details that might jog his memory. In front of him were three different tunnel entrances that he could take, but he was automatically pushed through one that had a strange marking above it. He continued through the tunnels for what seemed like thirty minutes. They passed skeletons that had become one with the tunnel walls and other strange artifacts that lined the edge of their path. They finally reached a thick stone door that had been shattered to pieces. Above the door, a message had been inscribed into the stone, but it was in a language that he couldn't read. They entered the room as a dark figured walked towards them. As he got closer, the clothes became visible. It wore the standard military combat uniform that was made up of a camo shirt and pants and combat boots. Right when the figure was about four feet away, his face became visible, and it was Ryder.

The apparition of Ryder passed Doctor Rogers and exited the room and tunnels. Doctor Rogers followed Ryder with his gaze and looked confused at the same time. The doctor took one last look around the room before the memory began to fade away.

Back in the white void that represented Ryder's mind, Doctor Rogers stood still, trying to comprehend what he had just seen. Slowly, he put the orb back into the box and continued doing the same with the other orbs. Straightening up, he turned his body in the same direction where Ryder stood. Thinking that he was looking behind him, Ryder turned and looked to see what was over there, but he didn't see anything. When Ryder turned back towards Doctor Rogers, he saw him looking up into the sky, but nothing was there.

Next, Doctor Rogers reached into the box another time. This time, he pulled out a small silver ball had, '17th Birthday' written across it in a red marker. Just like the others, Rogers gripped it tightly and activated the memory.

The scene showed Ryder looking at a tablet that showed four men staring at one. Suddenly, the lone man began powering up and then shot lightning towards the other men. Within a flash of a second, one of the men of the four, appeared behind the lone man with a red lightsaber through his chest.

The scene then showed Ryder crying as he was biting down on a piece of cloth.

The images of the scene then faded away as if it was fog being dispersed. Suddenly, Doctor Roger was gone, and everything faded back to an empty, white void.

Ryder's body ached. What just happened, he thought? He opened his eyes and saw a bright, LED light above him that immediately gave him a massive headache. He quickly turned his head to the side squinting his eyes forcefully.

Glass shattered everywhere around him, but this was the last of his worries as he barely noticed it. A surge of pain struck his entire body as he laid there helplessly.

Looking to his left, empty medical carts lined up next to him. A controller and a clock that read, 'Eight seventeen,' were on a cart next to his bed, and the controller had a red button that was labeled, 'CALL.'

He slowly reached for the button, but the pain was so intense that he decided to just lay there completely still. 'I can't do this right now,' he thought. Keeping his eyes shut, Ryder fell back into a deep sleep.

"How did all this glass break?" said a voice.

Something warm was touching his right arm and slightly shook it.

He heard, "Ryder, wake up. It's time for you to wake up."

Ryder remembered how bright the overhead light had been, so he turned to his right and opened his eyes slowly. Sensei Rodan was standing there with Doctor Rogers behind him.

"Ryder, can you hear me? You've been unconscious for three days now," explained Rodan.

Ryder opened his mouth to speak, but the only thing that came out was a wheeze of air.

"It's okay, Ryder," said Doctor Rogers. "Your body took quite the physical toll during the procedure." He held up a sheet of paper that had tally marks written on it in two columns. "The cabinet voted, and they decided that you were innocent of all charges."

Ryder closed his eyes and rolled his head back to a straight position. He forgot all about his accusations. After hearing the results, Ryder wanted to scream as loud as he could.

'Why the hell did I have to do this,' thought Ryder? All this pain. His body had never hurt this much before. Anger swelled up inside of him. He remembered the other student that had called him a traitor, and that made him even more mad.

"He's grinding his teeth, Doc," said Rodan. "Is this behavior normal?"

Right after he said this, Ryder clinched his fist tightly. Rodan and Dr. Rogers gave each other concerned looks.

"This was my first time performing this procedure, but I think that he's enraged with this whole thing," explained Doctor Rogers. "Let me see if I can do anything."

He closed his eyes and began trying to get into Ryder's mind, but he was blocking him from entering it. He realized that Ryder formed a mental barrier as a way to block out anyone that tried to enter his mind. He couldn't penetrate whatever it was. "He's put up some sort of barrier that he refuses to bring down, or he might now even know that it's up," said Doc.

Sensei Rodan leaned into Ryder's ear and said, "Take deep breath, Ryder. I know you're beyond pissed, but we can't have you doing anything that will risk your safety as a soldier and student of the US."

Rodan looked at Rogers like he was asking what he should do, but Doctor Roger only stared at Ryder. Sensei Rodan looked back at Ryder and said, "Use the anger you have right now in your training. Don't forget that you can access new techniques and knowledge in the academy. Don't throw that away."

'If there is one thing that Ryder will listen to, its logic,' thought Rodan.

The tension in the air eased as Ryder relaxed his fists. Sensei Rodan released a deep breath and turned to Doctor Rogers, but he was bent over and looked like he was in pain.

"Doctor, are you okay," asked Rodan?

Doctor Rogers looked up at Ryder while hunched over. A sharp pain filled his lungs that made it hard to breath. "Yeah, it's just a side effect from the procedure," screeched out Dr. Rogers.

The pain slowly eased away, and he stood up. "We should let him be for a little bit. The pain should ease within three hours, and he will be back to his normal self," said Doctor Rogers. He turned and walked out of the room and left Sensei Rodan next to Ryder's bed. Rodan put his hand on Ryder's shoulder and told him to get well quickly, then left.

Rodan was walking down the hallway that lead to the hanger when he saw Nero at the end of the hallway. Having to face one of Ryder's friends was the last thing on his agenda because he didn't know if he was allowed to disclose any information about Ryder and his procedure. Nero saw him before Rodan could do anything to avoid talking to him.

He ran down the hallway yelling out, "General! I know y'all have him somewhere! Let me talk to him!" Nero, being one of Ryder's close friends, had searched everywhere for Ryder with no luck in finding him. The rumors that were going around only fueled his desire to try and find him. Nero was out of breath with his hands on his knees in-front of Rodan.

"Stop worrying," Rodan finally said. "You will see him soon."

He brushed by Nero, and Nero yelled, "That doesn't answer shit!"

Rodan had already used his key card to get into the hanger and boarded a ship before Nero was able to input his information and get into the hanger. 'Finally,' he thought. 'Maybe, I'll actually be able to think now.'

On both ships, the main talk was if Ryder was a traitor or not. Since no one had seen or heard from him, suspicion that the rumor was true only rose. Zakee was walking into the Dining Hall with Clayton when he heard someone say that the reason Ryder was missing was due to the President sending him back to Earth to return to ISIS.

Zakee was tired of all this talk, especially since it was all speculation. He turned toward the person that was talking about Ryder and lashed out saying, "Shut the hell up! To think that Ryder is a traitor is absurd. If he was one, then we wouldn't have made it off Earth in the first place!" The guy that was talking about Ryder didn't respond, so Zakee scoffed at him and went to get his food.

Hearing a lot of people talk bad about his best friend rubbed him the wrong way. He sat down with his tray and began eating the pork roast and mashed potatoes that were cooked for dinner.

Zakee liked eating dinner towards the end of their designated eating time for the main purpose of peace and quiet. This served as a good time to read a book or just run through his thoughts. He couldn't help to have second thoughts about Ryder too. He was his best friend, but there were a lot of coincidences and unknown facts about him that left most people in the dark. Zakee decided not to worry about Ryder and just finish eating, so he reached into his backpack and pulled out his first archive book. The title read, "Summoning Contracts." He shoved a mouthful of mashed potatoes into his mouth as he flipped open the book to chapter one.

The chapter opened up by reading, "The Summoning Technique is a space-time ninjutsu that allows the user to transport animals or people across long distances instantly and use blood as a sacrifice." He flipped the page and continued reading. "Before an animal summoning can be performed, a prospective summoner must first sign a contract with a given species."

The booked then listed out a number of animals that a summoner may sign a contract with. "A list of possible summons includes: toads, snakes, slugs, dogs, wolves, hawks, sharks, tortoises, bugs, monkeys, ravens, and many more. Rare summons includes: chimera animals, dragons, salamanders, foxes, and tigers." Zakee stopped reading and began to think of which animal he wanted to sign a contract with. There were individual perks to every animal. Their chakra natures were different and some of them even possessed abilities that hadn't been discovered before. What animal am I the most similar, he thought? After reading the strengths and weaknesses of all the animals, he narrowed his choices down. He chose to narrow down the contracts to wolves, dragons, foxes, and tigers.

Wolves were masters of speed, perceptiveness, and stalking. Like dogs, their sense of smell, hearing, and sight were incredible. Their heightened senses attracted Zakee the most because of their usefulness in sneak missions.

Tigers were the same as wolves; except tigers were far stronger than wolves. Tigers were even a little faster too. The only problem with signing a contract with tigers is the incredible physical training that the signer must undergo.

The fox was described as the perfect silent assassin. Foxes are able to silently sneak up on someone without being noticed. Their senses were the best out of all the animals, and their agility was incredible.

However, Dragons were the most badass in Zakee's opinion due to them only being a part of fictional stories. Their skills included flying, breathing fire, and an unparalleled healing ability. The fire would mesh well with my wind jutsus, he thought. His train of thought was interrupted when Sensei Rodan walked into the Dining Hall. He walked over to the counter and grabbed a granola bar then headed to the table Zakee was sitting at.

"Care to shed some light on all the rumors going around," asked Zakee? He was a little frustrated with how Rodan wouldn't previously say anything about Ryder. It was all "confidential" according to Rodan and the other Generals.

Sensei Rodan sat down and tore open his granola bar wrapper as he exhaled deeply.

"So?" said Ziggy a little more aggravated. There still wasn't an answer.

Rodan took a bite out of his chocolate chip bar and leaned back in his chair. Looking up into his eyes, he said the last thing Ziggy wanted to hear. "Funny how I came over to this dining hall to avoid all these questions, but it seems like I can't escape everyone."

The same piercing look was still in Zakee's eyes, so he continued. "They're true."

Ziggy lowered his head into his hands and almost began to say something, but he was cut off by Rodan. "Three days ago, we performed a procedure on him that sent Doctor Rogers into his mind. Doc would read his memories, and if they had to do with anything relating to the war, his application process, or his time before the academy, then they were projected onto a screen for all of us to see. Of course, there was a group of us that didn't want this to happen, but there were also many generals that thought he was the mole, so we went on with the procedure." Rodan stopped to take another bite of his bar.

Taking his head out of his hands, he looked up at Rodan and asked, "So, what were the results?"

Rodan swallowed and continued describing what happened. "The procedure took a little more than an hour, but all the memories disproved the rumors. In other words, none of the rumors were true, and everyone acknowledged that." He paused to let Ziggy catch his breath.

"However, he has been in a bed since then, and is in incredible pain. Doctor Rogers told me that the pain should go away after three hours, and it has been one and a half since I left his bed."

Zakee's face lit up as a big grin came across his face. He stood up and walked in a circle to spend some pent-up energy. "Thank God," he said. "I was actually getting a little worried about him. People were saying that y'all had already sent him back to Earth!"

Ziggy sat back down and put his hands over his head releasing a big sigh of relief. Rodan sat quietly, letting Ziggy express how he was feeling at the moment.

Rodan looked down at the book that was open and in-front of Zakee. He noticed that it had a lot of animals listed on one side, and their description was right next to them. 'He's thinking of signing a summoning contract,' he thought.

"So, now that you know how Ryder is doing, you can focus one-hundred percent on your training, right?" Rodan said this hoping that Ziggy would tell him what animal he wanted to sign a contract with.

"You're damn right about that," he replied looking down at his book. "How do I go about signing a contract with one of these animals?" asked Zakee.

A soft smile appeared on Rodan's face. "You have to go to where they are located and convince them to let you sign a contract with them. A lot of their locations are unknown to us right now."

Ziggy was nodding slowly, still starring at the animals on the pages.

"Did you know that if they think you are capable enough, then they will let you train to become a sage?" asked Rodan. He knew Ziggy's answer by the blank look on his face.

"Sage mode is a state someone can achieve by blending their own chakra with nature energy. That creates sage chakra. It opens up new strengths and techniques that no ordinary person can learn. For example, at Mount Myoboku, the toads can train you to become their sage. This will lead to a dramatic increase in strength, speed, stamina, reflexes, and durability."

Rodan paused to see if Ziggy had any questions.

Zakee looked up at his Sensei and asked, "Which one of these could I become a sage in?"

Sensei Rodan grabbed the book and turned it to where he could read the pages. After a minute of analyzing the animals, he said, "If I'm not mistaken. You can become a sage with any of these animals."

Without hesitation, Ziggy pointed at the dragon. "I want to sign a contract with the dragons."

Since Zakee already wanted to learn the Dragon-Fist Technique, Rodan assumed that he was going to choose the dragon. "Well, you'll have to do some research to sign with them because we do not have a contract of theirs. I'd check the archive and learn about them if I were you."

Once Rodan finished, Zakee said, "Okay! Thanks!" as he vanished, only leaving a cloud of smoke behind him.

Sensei Rodan chuckled a little and said, "Well, well. Seems like he's getting the hang of shadow clones."

_Comment to let me know what you thought of the chapter or what will happen next! Until next time!_

_ ~Aldon_


	16. Chapter 15: Master and Apprentices

**Chapter 15: Masters and Apprentices**

Ryder opened his eyes and rolled over in his bed. Finally, my body isn't aching anymore, he thought. The clock on his bed-side table read, "7:43 AM."

He rolled back onto his back and starred at the ceiling. The ceiling tiles had multiple cracks that extended everywhere throughout the tiles.

'What is the last thing I remember,' he thought.

He closed his eyes, and two images appeared. He could tell who they were just by their posture. It was General Rodan and Doctor Rogers. He could hear Rodan talking in his ear about using his anger and frustration and to channel it into his training. That's it.

The procedure was done, and all the suspicions and charges were no more.

A wave of relief washed over him.

Suddenly, with his eyes still closed, he saw a droid appear in his thoughts. It was an old, red R2 model, but it seemed very familiar. He felt warm looking at it. The image disappeared as he heard a loud crashing noise.

He opened his eyes and saw a nurse bending over to pick up a tin tray that she had dropped on the ground.

Using the Force, he lifted the tray off the ground, and the nurse turned around with a jump and a yelp.

"I'm sorry," she blushed. "You startled me…" She looked down at a folder in her hand and then back at Ryder. "Ryder," she finished.

She held out her arms, and Ryder placed the tray on them. He gave her a soft smile and asked, "How long have I been asleep?"

She glanced back at his file and gave a quick response saying, "A little over a week, Mr. Jedi. I've been instructed to get your clothes and ask that you head towards the briefing room when you feel well enough to do so."

She sat the tin tray down on a nearby table and walked to Ryder's side. "I'm going to run a quick check on you, if that's fine," she asked?

Ryder nodded giving his approval, so she began to start applying pressure to Ryder's legs, arms, head, chest, back, and finally his shoulders to see if he still felt any serious pain.

"Just let me know if you feel any pain, okay," she asked?

"Got it," responded Ryder.

No matter where she pushed down on, Ryder didn't feel pain in that area. He really only had a bad head ache at that point.

"Well, it seems like you're in fine shape," she said as she put a check mark next to the respected body part she checked.

The nurse folded the folder and placed in on the tray. "It looks like you're clear to leave whenever you want," she said with a big smile.

She picked up the tray and went through a door that was on the other side of the room. She came back after a few minutes with Ryder's standard, casual clothes. She laid them down on the table next to him and said, "Here are some of your clothes that your friend, Nero brought by a few days ago." She left the room going through the same door that she went through earlier.

On the table was an outfit that was comprised of his blue gym shorts, ankle socks and white sneakers, a white, short-sleeve shirt that had two buttons at the neck, and a gray hoodie.

Ryder looked back at the clock that read, "8:31 AM" and began to get out of bed. He took his legs out from the covers and put them on the ground. He stood up and stumbled forward but caught himself before he fell to the ground.

'I guess this is what happens when you don't use your legs for a week,' he thought.

He regained his balance and took off the gown that he was wearing, and he began putting on his own clothes.

By the time he finished, his legs had regained their walking strength; he was ready to get out of the Med Bay. After all, it is his least favorite place on the ship.

He walked out the door and started walking to the elevator. On his way to the elevator, he stopped and looked out a window. They were in a part of space where the only thing visible from right there were distant stars.

Something deep inside Ryder made him feel empty. It was as if he was missing something that he knew was important to him. Something that WAS a part of him.

He turned and continued his way back to the elevator. He pressed the up button and called for the elevator. It must have been only a few floors down because it was there within a few seconds.

Ryder slowly got in and went to floor: seventy-four.

On the way up, he began thinking of ways to tell off all the generals that didn't believe in him, but he knew that would just get him in trouble. He was bound to get something in return for the pain he went through.

The elevator began to slow down, and it finally stopped. The doors opened, and he was immediately greeted by a protocol droid.

The droid began to speak saying, "Good morning, Mr. Jace! I am RA-7, a—"

Ryder waved his hand at droid, telling it to be quiet.

RA-7 started walking into another room as it said, "Well that was rude."

There were only three people in the briefing room, and they were all sitting at the far end of the table. In the middle, sat President Reed. On his right, was General Hall, and on his left, was General Fox.

President Reed stood up and said, "Excuse KA-7, he's quite the character." There was a long pause after he said that.

He motioned at Ryder to come sit down and said, "Please, Ryder. Take a seat. We have much to say."

Ryder looked at each of the Generals who didn't have a single expression on their face. He walked to the near end of the table and sat down in the closest chair.

"First, General Fox has something that he would like to tell you." Ryder looked over at the General, who's elbows were on the table and hands were supporting his head.

General Fox put his hands in his lap and looked up at Ryder. "On behalf of everyone that thought you were the mole, we apologize. Your progression rate and knowledge are what led us to believe this, but we were terribly wrong as shown by the memories that we all saw. We didn't know that the procedure would cause that much pain either, so once again we are sorry."

President Reed looked over at General Fox and gave him a nod then returned his gaze back at Ryder. The President began saying, "We are glad to say that all restrictions that were placed on you are now lifted. You have full access to the archive along with everything inside of it. Along with texts from the archive, we give you permission to examine the holocrons. However, if another one of them can only be viewed once, you must immediately tell us of the content."

General Fox shot the President a look of shock, but the President kept going. "You are one of two people that can open them, so feel free to learn as much as you can from them."

Ryder began to smile. He liked seeing General Fox not get his way, and he was excited about learning from the holocrons.

"Now that that matter is settled. We have a mission for you," continued the President. He pressed a button on his side of the table that made a holographic map appear above the table.

In the middle of the map were the two suns and the surrounding planets. Earth and four other planets were highlighted red, and Ryder assumed that it was because they were under ISIS control.

General Hall stood up and began to speak. "Your mission is to create your own lightsaber. You have been using a training lightsaber for too long, and you have shown enough skill to make your own. Inside the archive, there is a book that lays out a step-by-step process on how to build one. You might want to learn that."

President Reed pushed another button that was below the on button. Six planets turned a yellow color.

"These planets contain Kyber crystals, the source of a lightsaber's power," said General Hall. "Use the Force to pick a planet to go to, and that is where you will find the crystal to forge your weapon with. You will—" General Hall was cut off by Ryder suddenly speaking.

"I'll go to this one," said Ryder with eyes closed. He was pointing to one of the planets that had the name "Ilum" above it.

General Hall looked curiously at Ryder. "Okay… We'll make a note of that. You will be able to take a crew of your choosing along with you. Of course, we will review your selections and give the final saying and possible recommend a few people too. Do you have any questions?"

Ryder scratched his head thinking of questions. "Yes, how will me and my team get there?"

President Reed turned off the holographic map and walked over to Ryder. He said, "Go down to the hanger and check out what starships we have in stock. Talk to Katie, the girl that came up here with you right after we left Earth. She'll be able to help you pick one out down there."

President Reed led Ryder to the elevator and pressed the down button. "I'll get to it right away, sir," said Ryder as he saluted the President.

The elevator door opened with a few people inside that he didn't recognize.

"At ease, Ryder," said President Reed. "Now go on." After everyone in the elevator got out, Ryder got in and pressed floor three.

On the way down, the elevator stopped on floor seventeen. The doors opened, and Luca and Jake walked in.

"Ryder!" yelled out Luca.

"Good to see you back on your feet! I knew you weren't the mole the WHOLE time!" said Jake as he nudged him with his elbow.

"I haven't seen y'all in a long time," said Ryder dapping them up.

"Yeah, we've been training rigorously to be honest," said Luca with a laugh.

Ryder noticed this right when the doors opened. Luca and Jake both had bandages around their arms and legs from their training. "That's awesome! Have y'all been inside the archive yet?" asked Ryder.

"No," said Jake. "I'm in the D-class. I haven't really gotten a hang of my gum nen."

"He's gotten a lot better physically, though," reassured Luca. "Shit, I don't even know what nen is basically."

"Anyways, where are you headed to," asked Jake?

"I got assigned a mission to make my own lightsaber," said Ryder with a wide smile. "I have to go down to the hanger and pick out a ship to take to Ilum."

"Congrats man, that's awesome! I've studied up on that place, actually. It's the ice planet, right? Has a lot of Kyber crystals?" asked Luca.

"That's the one. They haven't told me when I'm supposed to leave, but I hope it isn't for a while. I'm a little rusty," admitted Ryder.

The elevator came to a stop on floor three. "Well, this is my stop guys," said Ryder as he walked out onto the floor.

"We'll be in the training rooms for a while, so if you want, come on over and train with us," said Jake.

"Okay, I'll see if I can make it over there afterwards," Ryder told the two as the elevator doors closed. He turned around and began walking in the direction of the hanger.

On the way there, he passed by two or three classrooms full of students learning the history of their powers, the basics of them, strategy, and weaknesses of other powers. However, he didn't see a classroom talking about the history of the Jedi or their powers. Ryder felt a sense of pride that he was a part of a rare class of warriors, and he felt saddened that the few other Jedi didn't have a teacher. The only qualified teacher was General Lance, but he was always too busy to teach because he was a strategic planner. That's when the thought of himself teaching them came to mind.

'I feel like I can do it,' he thought. 'It would also help me get back into fighting shape.'

He arrived at the hanger and entered the large area where there was a constant sound of welding and power tools. On the other side of the hanger, Katie was welding a panel onto the top of a light freighter.

Ryder went straight to where she was to ask her about the ships. The ships that were ready for takeoff included the standard starships. There were X-Wings, Y-Wings, and A-Wings ready for departure. The other mechanics were working on TIE fighters, other light freighters, and a few Jedi Starfighters. He had to be careful not to get in the way of other mechanics because they would often get mad when someone would accidentally mess them up.

"Hey, R2! Get me the stick welder!" yelled out Katie from on top of the freighter.

The R2 droid rolled to the stick welder and grabbed it with his mechanical hand. It turned around and starred at Ryder like he had a third eye.

"R2, stopped messing around and hurry up," yelled Katie! She saw it starring at Ryder, so she decided to save him from the creepy encounter with the droid.

"Well, that was weird," said Ryder up to Katie.

'That looked just like the R2 droid I saw when I was in the Med Bay,' thought Ryder.

"Yeah, that droid is a little weird, but it's a good droid for sure. He kind of just showed up the other day out of the blue and began helping me out," she said. Katie sat up, put her tools down, and lifted up her welding mask.

"You got any starships or freighters I can use for a mission? It needs to fit at least five people," said Ryder.

Katie said something under breath, but Ryder couldn't hear it. She climbed down from the ship and walked over to Ryder.

"Hey, R2. Come here really quick." The utility droid scurried over to Ryder and Katie.

"So, you're finally out of the Med. Bay? I bet you're happy about that," said Katie. She was crouched down, pressing a series of buttons on R2's front panel.

"Yeah, that whole thing was a pain in my ass. Pointless too," replied Ryder.

"Well, I know it did ease quite a few people's minds. There was a fairly large group that believed the rumors. Whoever started them is an idiot, though," she explained.

After she pressed a few more buttons, she said, "Okay, R2. Go ahead and display the ships."

Using his holographic projector, R2 projected a hologram of the ship that Katie was just working on. The shape of the starship resembled the letter, 'P.' On its top, it had a double laser cannon, and at the base of the leg was the cockpit. Next to the schematics was a description of features that were hidden from the blueprints. In bullet points it read, 'Two Concussion-Missile Launchers, a front and dorsal laser cannon, a dorsal laser turret, and two proton torpedo launchers.'

After Ryder finished reading the description he asked, "How long before this ship is ready to go?"

"I'd say about one month before everything is in top notch condition. But, depending on when your departure is, I can get a lot of the mechanics to work on it to speed up the process."

"Don't worry about that," said Ryder laughing a little. "I'd love some down time right about now anyways."

However, Katie was not in a joking mood due to the amount of work she had to finish. "Since you've come by, within about two weeks of the President telling me to fix up all these ships, I only have one other that's available." Katie pointed at a Firespray-31-class starship that looked like it had some wear and tear on it. The best part about this starship were the numerous military weapons that had been built onto the ship. It included laser cannons, proton torpedo launchers, blasters, concussion missiles, a tractor beam, and seismic charges. However, it could only carry two people.

The last ship that was available was a heavily modified Imperial Transport starship. It was black and had two side wings. One was a normal wing with a plate with a plaster at the end. The other wing had two long plates on the end that could contract and separate with blasters on their ends too.

"This ship's name is: Rogue Shadow, and boy is that fitting. It has a mach-speed engine, can fit 8 crewmembers, shielding system, an advance sensor system, a cloaking device, and laser cannons. It can pick up ships across an entire system, and sneak through the most heavily guarded places. I still has a little ways to go before it can be used at pull potential, though." Katie had pride in this gem that she had built.

"It's the best infiltrating ship in this whole part of the solar system," she said prideful.

Ryder could tell that Katie was in a serious work mood, so he cracked a little joke. "Okay, perfect. So, I'll come by in two weeks to pick up the ship, and hopefully it won't blow up while flying."

Katie laughed a little as she got up from kneeing next to the utility droid. "None of the ones I build blow up. They do that to other ships. So, which ship do you want?"

"Well, I really like how the Rogue Shadow can detect a lot of things while not being detected at all. The fact that it can fit a large crew helps too." Ryder paused to consider both ships. "I guess I'll go with the Rogue Shadow."

"Good choice. It has the ability to weave in and out of tight spaces; I just hope you have a skilled enough pilot to get through asteroid belts," said Katie.

Ryder's smile was larger than ever.

"No. It's you. Don't tell me that you're the pilot," said Katie palming her.

"No promises," said Ryder laughing. Katie's stern glare met Ryder's eyes, and he quickly said, "I promise that I'm not that bad!"

She took a deep breath. "I really hope you brush up on your piloting skills before this mission." She walked over to the ladder and began climbing to the top of the ship. Katie picked up her welding mask, put it on, and began to weld the top panels onto the top of the starship.

"Okay, don't sabotage my ship while I'm gone!" said Ryder and he began walking out of the hanger.

On his way out, he noticed that a lot of the mechanics stopped their work and starred in his direction.

'What the hell are they looking at,' thought Ryder.

Suddenly, he felt something run into the back of his leg.

"Bleep bloop boop beep," said the same red, astromech droid that had followed him from Katie's ship.

Across the hanger, Ryder heard a voice yell out, "Just take him. He wasn't that big of a help after all!"

It seemed like Katie no longer had any use for the utility droid. He laughed a little at how free going this droid was. "Okay little guy, let's go."

Ryder looked down at his watch, and it read, '1:48 PM.' He looked at the utility droid and said, "Let's get some lunch, my new friend."

Ryder and the R2 droid went to the Dining Hall and got a plate of pizza and broccoli. Within twenty minutes, Ryder had finished his meal and was ready to begin his studying again. Ryder went to the elevator and called for it.

"So, what's your name?" asked Ryder.

"Bloop beep bop suweee," said the utility droid.

"So, all you're going to give me is 'R2?' I guess that I can deal with that," said Ryder.

The elevator doors opened and the two got in. Ryder pressed the button that would send them to the seventy-third floor.

The only thing the droid said was where they were going. To which Ryder told him that the archive was up on this floor. They reached the seventy-third floor and got out. The elevator was at the end of a hall that was about 125 feet long and at the other end was the entrance to the archive room. Ryder walked over to the hand and eye scanner with the utility droid by his side.

"Well, let's see what's in here," said Ryder.

He placed his hand on the scanner and his eyes in the headband. A beep came from the scanner acknowledging that it had scanned Ryder. The steel sliding doors opened.

There were 6 bookshelves lining each side of the walkway that led to two waist-high columns the supported a red and blue holocron. Behind the holocrons were tables that the students could use for studying. There were about fifteen people scattered around reading a book.

"Do you like it, Ryder?" asked a voice from behind him.

Ryder looked around and saw a tall man wearing a general's, military uniform. The general had a muscular body shape and had blonde, flippy hair. "Yeah, General Lance. I didn't know that we had more scrolls than what Jerry teleported."

General Lance walked to the nearest bookshelf and picked a book and flipped it to a random page. "Yes, we had these on this ship already. They are the more secretive books that hold a lot of ancient knowledge. It would do you well if you study a while here." He closed the book and put it back in its spot on the shelf.

"Awesome. I'll make sure I do that then. So, what's the deal with the holocrons?" asked Ryder.

"Take them into a room over there," said General Lance. He pointed towards a door that was in a corner behind the studying tables. "You'll be able to use the Force Freely in there and experience the holocrons."

"Oh, okay. I also wanted to talk to you about the other Jedi," said Ryder.

"What is it?" General Lance responded.

"Since you don't have any time to teach or train them, can I do that?" asked Ryder.

"I'll have to talk to the President about that. But, I can discuss that while you're on your mission," said the General.

"I'm not planning on leaving for another month, though. This will give me enough time to teach them a little of what I know and get myself into better shape. Wasn't that one of the purposes of the archive?" insisted Ryder. He was hoping to guilt trip General Lance into letting him teach.

"Fine," said the General. "I'll send out a message to all Jedi. It will say to meet on floor fifteen in room seven at eight in the morning. Also, we are the only two people that can open the Jedi holocron. And, you are the only one that can open the Sith holocron. I've tried multiple times but can't. So, just be careful. We don't know what it will try to say to you."

"I'll be sure to relay everything I learn to you, General. Don't worry," said Ryder. "This will also give me enough time to think of what I'll teach the other Jedi. See ya!" Ryder waved goodbye and was off to the book shelves.

He got to the Force section of the book shelves and picked up a few books. First, he grabbed, "Lightsaber forging." Next, he grabbed "Ancient Sith" and "Ancient Jedi." He put these three books in his bag and took out two other books. He put the "Form Two" and "Form Four" books back on the shelves.

As Ryder put the books on the shelf, R2 whistled to him. "Beep bop scre bop."

Ryder turned to the astromech droid and saw a small leather bound book that had, 'Force Applications' written across the front in gold. He grabbed it and flipped through the pages. Intrigued with the content, he placed it in his bag and said to R2, "Thanks, R2. Where did you get this?"

However, instead of answering Ryder, R2 strolled off in a different direction.

Ryder shrugged off that encounter and threw his bag strap over his shoulder and walked over to the holocrons.

"Don't forget to record whatever the Sith holocron says," reminded General Luke from the other side of the room.

"I've got this, General," said Ryder. "Just go back to doing your General duties."

Ryder looked at the holocrons and said to himself, "I guess I'll try the Jedi holocron this time." He reached out and grabbed the blue holocron.

Holding it in his hand, he walked over to the room that General Lance had pointed out to him. Ryder reached the door then turned to find the astromech droid.

"R2, come here real quick," he yelled over to him!

"SHHHHHHH!" A few students with open books glared at Ryder from a nearby table.

Ryder waved and mouthed the words, 'I'm sorry,' to them.

R2 came up to Ryder, who said, "I need you to go find the digital copy of these books and scan them." He handed the books to the droid, and it took off in the direction of the main console. Ryder opened the door and walked into the room.

The only thing in the room was a red pad sitting in the middle of the floor. The walls were tall and gray with a red cushions on them too. He walked to the middle and sat down, throwing his bad to the side.

"Well, let's see what they've got to say," he said as he began using the Force to open the Jedi holocron. It began floating in the air, and the corners were turning as they slid off the blue cube. A bright flash of blue and white light came from the cube, and suddenly, Ryder was no longer in the room in the archive.

Ryder was in an empty room that had a large window that over looked a city full of skyscrapers and flying speeders. He turned to the entrance of the room and saw a small, old, green alien.

"My old holocron, been found it has," it said.

"Who are you?" asked Ryder

The green guy laughed as he waddled to the center of the room and sat on a stool two times its size. "Come, come. Learn. Who I am, matters not," it said as it poked its finger towards Ryder.

Ryder slowly walked towards the green alien and sat down in front of him.

The green alien sat with his eyes closed. "Strong with the Force you are. I see… Trained by someone of the Gray." He paused.

"Let me teach what he could not." The alien opened its eyes and looked into Ryder's. "Yoda, I am. Listen and learn, you will," he said.

Ryder didn't bother saying a word to even respond.

"Your mind, clear it," Yoda started. "Learned Battle Meditation, and Force Enlightenment and Aura you have." He let out a deep breath.

"Open up to the Force, you must. Feel everything. The living energy that flows through all. Even yourself. The source of the Force within you, feel it. Grasp it."

Ryder was doing exactly what he was told. He could feel his own Force in his hand.

"Good. Now, pull it in. Suppress what you feel. This will make it harder for other Jedi or powers to sense your presence."

Ryder felt light and different. He lifted his arm, but he couldn't see it. All he saw was the floor behind it.

"Force Suppression is what this power is. Another power you have achieved is Force Camouflage. Hand in hand, they go." Ryder's invisibility went away as he could see his arm again.

"Powerful Force power it is. In infiltration missions, used many times."

Yoda sat up straight and continued to say, "More to teach, I have." He closed his eyes, then a door opened behind Ryder.

He turned around to look at what was coming through, but the little, green alien stopped him. "No! Stop! Focus…" He paused for emphasis.

"Patient you must be. See with the Force."

Ryder closed his eyes and did as instructed. He searched the building with the Force. It was easier to do that here, thought Ryder. It was more connected to the Force. Concentrating, he calmed himself and felt through the Force. Now in front of him, stood a metal contraption. He could hear the gears and metal joints clanking against other parts as the oil and electricity rush through their hoses and wires. It was a simple protocol droid. One that felt like KA-7 in the briefing room. "What is a droid doing here?" asked Ryder.

"Good… the droid, you feel," said Yoda. "Now, feel the flow of the Force rushing through the machine. The oil. The electricity. Its movements. When grasped everything, you have. Freeze their movements. Disrupt their flow of the Force," said Yoda. "Now try it."

The robot began to move its arms back and worth creating a constant motion. Ryder searched the room and found the robot standing in front of him. He reached out again and felt the Force flowing into the droid. It allowed the gear shafts and parts to move, like it was the real oil making the machine work. He kept the feel of the Force in the back of his mind. He reached in and felt the electricity and fluid flow through the wires and hoses. With the Force, electricity, and oil vividly in Ryder's mind, he reached out and grasped all three of them, holding onto them tightly. He clenched his hand and formed a fist. While Ryder closed his hand, the robot stopped moving completely.

"Fast learner you are. Stun droid, you have. Unconscious for a few minutes, it will be. The same thing you have learned, applied to people it can be. Stun them you will too. However, this is all that I can teach you in this holocron." Yoda stood up and walked to the kneeling Ryder.

He said, "In the real world, performing these techniques are harder." The green Jedi took his walking stick and tapped the end of it on Ryder's chest for emphasis. "Train more and be patient. Your skills and Force powers, develop them you must. Meditation and continuous practice it will."

Putting his cane to the ground, Yoda walked past Ryder, and his entire surrounding began to vanish like smoke when the wind blows.

Ryder opened his eyes, and the square holocron was back to its original cube shape. He was in the room that was in the corner of the archive. He looked at his watch and the time read, "9:41." So, I was in the holocron for two hours. I can do one more, he thought.

Ryder stood up with the Jedi holocron in his hand. He left his bag and walked to the column that the holocrons rested on. He placed the holocron back on the pillar and picked up the holocron that glowed red. When Ryder turned around, a guy that looked around sixteen years of age was standing in-between him and his study room. He stood about 5'10", had an athletic body type, had short, buzzed brown hair, and wore Jedi training clothes. On his hip was a silver hilt that resembled a classic, Jedi lightsaber.

"I'm Ben Ward," he introduced himself. "I'm a part of an ISIS rebel squadron that joined the military a few days ago. They ran us through the Roxy, and it turned out that I'm a Jedi." Ryder stood there analyzing Ben. He took in his posture, the way he spoke, and other facial expressions.

"I just received a call from General Lance, and he told me to come find you here in the archive. He said that you would be able to train me." Ryder's eyes widened in response to hearing that the General is letting him train other Jedis.

"That is, if you're fine with this," he added.

"No," stuttered out of Ryder's mouth. "I mean, yes. Yes, I'll train you," he laughed as he finished talking. "I'm just surprised that he is letting me do this."

Ben just stood there with a smile on his face and waited for what his new master had to say. "Well, what do you know already," asked Ryder?

"I know how to use a sword, and that is about it," Ben said. Ryder thought for a few seconds then raised his index finger. "Wait a second," he said. He walked around Ben and into the corner room. He rummaged through his bag and pulled out two books then headed back outside to Ben. Ben was turned around looking at what Ryder grabbed inside the room and held out his hands. Ryder placed two books in his hands. The titles read, "Form One: Shii-Cho" and "Form Three: Soresu."

Ryder looked at Ben's eyes and said, "First lesson: Never underestimate knowledge, for knowledge is true power. Now, begin reading these two books, and come find me in the training room tomorrow. That will be it for now." He shooed Ben away before he turned to go back into the corner room. Well this is about to be interesting, he thought.

Ryder looked at the time, and it was now "10:34 pm." "All of this can wait for another day," said Ryder as he put the Sith holocron back on its pillar.


	17. Chapter 16: Welcome, Squad Ryder

_Disclaimer__: I do not own any of the concepts or powers within this fanfiction. Please support the original releases._

**Chapter 16: Welcome, Squad Ryder**

One and a half month had passed since General Lance and Yoda had challenged Ryder with training other Jedi while maintaining his own training. During this one month, Ryder hadn't gone on any missions because he did not have a legit lightsaber. Instead, he was now training Ben Ward and two other Jedi.

One of his other students was a nineteen-year-old girl. Her name was Daisy Toller. She was short at 5'3," but she was very quick and acrobatic. Ryder quickly noticed this strength and began to teach her in the Form Four style: Ataru. Along with Ataru, he taught her Form Three: Soresu and the basics of Form One: Shii-Cho. Since her speed was so fast, she became very good with Form Four and mediocre in the other two.

His third other student was eighteen-years-old and had a stocky stature. His name was Colin Zax. He was 5'8" and weighed around 185 pounds, and all the weight was muscle. His strong body type made it easy to teach him Form Five: Djem So. Naturally, Ryder also taught him Form One and Three as well.

Colin was better at overwhelming his opponents with strong attacks than being fluid and quick. His strong strikes brought other training swordsmen or proxies to their knees which would often win him his match.

Watching him and Daisy practice with each other was entertaining due to speed and strength being a weakness for each other.

Daisy would win sometimes by quickly jumping to one of Colin's blind spots or by quickly dodging an attack then delivering the winning blow.

The times that Colin would win included times where he overpowered Daisy or predicted where she would jump to in advance of his attack. Even though Daisy and Colin were not very strong with the Force, Ryder was proud that they had advanced in their sword fighting training so quickly. Neither of them were extremely proficient in their main form, but they knew the basics to the forms that they were learning efficiently.

Ben, on the other hand, was more proficient with Force abilities. He knew a little more than the basics in Forms One, Two, and Three, but decided to dedicate most of, much of his time in the archive studying the Force and its abilities.

There's a common saying that a teacher never has a favorite, but this wasn't the case for Ryder. He was Ryder's favorite to teach because there was a bond between him and Ryder that wasn't there with the others. Ryder had always enjoyed learning new Force techniques and studying other powers just like Ben. The eagerness to learn made Ben and Ryder spend a lot of time together. Even though Ryder had been teaching him for about a month and a half, they had grown close.

He had taught Ben Force Grip, Enlightenment, Aura, Droid Stun, and Battle Meditation. However, he was still very much of a beginner when it came to these Force abilities.

Right now, all four of them, including Murdoch, were in the training rooms on floor five. Murdoch was there to just cast Kido spells at the students. This helped them get use to deflecting strong spell type attacks with their lightsabers.

After Ben had fended off one of Murdoch's attacks with his lightsaber, Ryder decided to bring them together for a different exercise.

Ryder waved at Murdoch telling him to stop the attacks then turned to his students. "Okay everyone. Bring it in for a second," he said.

The three students turned off their lightsaber, and walked to their master. Once getting to him, Ben bent over resting his hands on his knees, and began taking deep breathes.

"You three are doing a good job, so far," Ryder started with. "However, now it's time to ramp of the training a little bit."

Ryder walked over to Murdoch and placed his hand on his shoulder. "One of the most," he said then stopped abruptly. He looked at Murdoch then back at his students.

"No, the most important part of a fight is teamwork. You must learn to trust your teammates and be able to cover for their weaknesses. For instance, Murdoch here," Ryder said patting his shoulder. "He can dish out long range attacks. This helps because, I can't do that."

Ryder walked back in front of his students and paced in front of them as he lectured. "By increasing in teamwork and knowing how your comrades fight, you also build chemistry. From an opponent's point of view: fighting a team with good chemistry is difficult because their attacks are coordinated and not just solo. Their defense is also better because each member trusts the other to cover their weakness."

Pausing in place in front of the three, Ryder said to them. "To help build this teamwork between the three of you, y'all will be going up against Murdoch in a three on one match. If you don't go at him with the intent to kill, you will NOT succeed and the training would have been for nothing."

Walking back to the side of the training room Ryder said to them, "Both teams get to opposite sides of the room and wait for my cue to start."

Murdoch walked to one side and turned to face the three students he would be fighting. 'Should I go easy on them,' he thought?

Shaking his head, he thought, 'I will to start with. Just to see what they're made of.'

Ryder looked at Murdoch who nodded. Then he looked at his students who all nodded back at him.

'Let's see what you guys got,' he thought as he raised his right hand up into the air.

Throwing his arm down, he yelled, "Begin!"

Murdoch jumped backwards, doing a backflip in the air. He slid back towards the wall while holding his palm outward. "Hado 4: Byakurai!"

A quick, blue lightning bolt immediately shot out from Murdoch's palm and made direct contact with Daisy which sent her into the wall behind her.

She was slow to get up.

Colin ran after Murdoch yelling at the top of his lungs with his lightsaber directly above his head.

An intense series of slashes and jabs came from Colin's yellow, training lightsaber, but with the help from Ryder's training lightsaber, Murdoch blocked all of Colin's attacks.

Out of the corner of his left eye, Murdoch saw a ten-foot steel pipe fly towards him at high speeds. Within an instant, he dashed to the right to try and evade the pipe.

The steel pipe crashed down into the ground right where Murdoch was standing, but neither Daisy or Ben saw Murdoch in the crash.

"Over here you two!" yelled Murdoch while waving at them from the other end of the room. Within an instant of when the two Jedi saw him, Murdoch was standing an inch away from where Colin was standing.

Frozen in shock, Colin couldn't move. 'How did he get back to me so quickly,' he thought?

"Game over," said Murdoch as he sliced the yellow blade across Colin's abdomen. Since he was using a training lightsaber, all that happened to Colin was a light beam with the temperature of 100 degrees grazed over his side with a feeling of increased heat where the beam met the skin. The only result of the attack was a scratch across his chest.

"Okay, Colin! You're out," yelled over Ryder.

Colin sighed and jogged over to where he was standing.

"Don't just stand there! Think of something to do, Ben and Daisy!" yelled Ryder.

Daisy was walking up to Ben's side. "Don't go in with a blind plan," yelled their master!

Daisy leaned closer to Ben as he began whispering a plan to her. After they finished formulating their plan, they got about twenty feet of separation.

"Now!" yelled Daisy.

Using her speed, she dashed towards Murdoch and began her swift attacks of slashes, jumps, twists, and dodges whenever he would counterattack. She quickly jumped over Murdoch and swiped towards his feet with her lightsaber, but he jumped and avoided the attack. While suspended in the air, Murdoch focused his power into a kick that sent Daisy into a nearby wall.

'She's out,' thought Ryder as he didn't see her move after being kicked into the wall.

Ben, who had stood by using the Force to constantly concentrate on Murdoch's position, grabbed him and froze him right after he kicked her.

Murdoch's eyes were wide open in shock as he began to struggle to get rid of Ben's Force grip. However, Ben was struggling to keep Murdoch suspended in the air. His neck's veins bulged out, and his face was turning dark red.

Ryder walked a few steps forward in amazement.

'Incredible,' he thought.

This was a highly difficult variant of Force grip that was much more difficult to perform. What made it different was that he was freezing Murdoch's movements while suspending them, not just suspending them. It froze the target's joints and muscles, and the user can apply pain to their target if they know how to. Ryder didn't say anything to Ben at that moment. He wanted to see what Ben and Murdoch would do in their situation.

Murdoch's began to laugh as he thought, 'I shouldn't have underestimated this one.'

Murdoch's Reiatsu, a Shinigami's life force, started to overpower Ben's Force grip.

It was growing at an incredible rate. The over-whelming pressure tired out Ben, so he lost focus and let Murdoch go.

"Such power," said Ben. "It's dark and heavy."

Ben's hands rested on his own knees as he took deep breathes to catch his breath.

Murdoch was slowly walking towards Ben. "You made me bring out power that I didn't think I would need to use. Congrats," said Murdoch. He was still walking towards Ben.

"However, by making me increase my power, you have to take what I dish out, now." He stopped walking when he was about fifteen meters away.

Murdoch raised his right hand and pointed his finger at Ben. He began to say, "Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south!" A red orb the size of a soft ball appeared in front of Murdoch's finger.

Ben couldn't move! He was frozen in place, and his feet wouldn't listen to him. The Reiatsu coming from Murdoch's attack was too much for him.

"Hado: Shakkaho!" yelled Murdoch.

The red orb flew at Ben at speeds that exceeded a car on an interstate. The attack exploded on contact causing a cloud of smoke and steam to appear.

Murdoch lowered his finger and took a few steps backwards. He calmed down and lowered his power and turned to the door. He turned off the practice lightsaber and dropped it on the ground. He put his hands in his pockets, and he walked to where his attack exploded.

"I should've known that my attack wouldn't hit him," Murdoch said as tilted his head back.

From the sideline, all Colin could see was a cloud of smoke. Once the smoke and steam cleared away, it was clear who was in the smoke. It was Ryder. His right hand was extended out to his right side.

Ben looked up. 'Incredible,' he thought. 'He was able to deflect Murdoch's attack with a single hand. I didn't even see him get in front of me.' Ben lowered his gaze back to the ground disappointed in himself.

Even though his Master's skills amazed him, he felt embarrassed and angered about his loss. The feeling of having to be saved and not being strong enough to beat his opponent.

Ryder turned towards Ben and held out his hand. "You did really good," said Ryder. "You surprised both me and Murdoch. That's why he used that attack on you."

Ben grabbed Ryder's hand, and he pulled him up. "I never knew that your Force grip was that powerful."

Murdoch walked over and patted Ben on the back. "For real. It really caught me guard," Murdoch said with a smile.

Daisy had gotten up from the kick, and dusted herself off. She met Colin right next to Ryder and Ben. Since Colin had been out first, he didn't have to catch his breath like the other two who were taking deep breathes.

"Okay, good job out here everyone. Each of you have improved, but there are still things I want you to work on."

Ryder turned towards Colin and said, "Colin. You rushed in without a plan and relied on your physical attacks. Think of a plan first, and try to be more aware of your surroundings. You can't freeze up like how you did."

Colin nodded.

"Daisy. You did well getting with Ben to devise a plan. I don't know if you purposefully got kicked so that you could get Murdoch in the air for Ben to freeze him, but you never want to make a plan that will get you or a teammate hurt on purpose."

She smiled and nodded.

"Now, Ben. I'm impressed with your Force grip, but you relied on it too much. There are other powers out there that can null your powers with the Force. Learn to use your lightsaber. Also, you agreed to a plan that purposefully got Daisy hurt. Never do that. A lost comrade is never worth a victory."

"Yes, master," Ben replied.

"With that in mind, I wanted to tell y'all that you did a great job. No matter the result, we've both seen improvements in each of you," Ryder said signaling to Murdoch who nodded in agreement.

"Now, I want each of y'all to work on your connection to the Force. I want each of you to go into a separate room on this level and just listen. Be still and calm. Feel the Force flowing through everything." Ryder pointed to three doors that connected to the training room that they were in.

"They are sealed, so no one will be able to disturb you. Pick one and go in. I want you to be tired when you start, so hurry up." The three rushed into different doors, and began their training.

"They've gotten a lot stronger, Ryder. Especially Ben," said Murdoch.

"Yeah, but they have ways to go before they can face off against strong opponents," responded Ryder. "I'm gonna go help them out a little more. I'll see ya later."

"Ok, catch ya later," said Murdoch.

Murdoch headed out of the training rooms and towards the elevator.

Ryder was shocked with how well they had done with only being on the ship for around two months.

'I'm gonna go check out how Ben is doing,' he thought at he began walking to his door.

Ben was in deep meditation. He hadn't notice Ryder walk in the door.

Ryder leaned against the wall and asked, "What is it that pushes you, Ben?"

Ben readjusted awkwardly. This was a strange question to him, so he paused for a second before answering Ryder. "Achieving a greater connection to the Force."

"Makes sense. Now, I want you to close your eyes," said Ryder.

Ben did as his master instructed him to do. "Cast away your eyes, and feel the ship around you.

"Listen to my words. Hear the sound of the other soldiers training in other rooms. Their weapons cutting through the air. The welding of the mechanics as they repair the ships in their shop and hanger…"

Ben sat and listened to Ryder. He felt how the swords of ninjas and Shinigamis produced a force of air when they were slashed. The heat of the welding torches made his face feel warm as a few bullets of sweat dripped from his sideburns.

"Good," said Ryder feeling the Force flow more freely in his student. "Now, stretch out further. Hear the rumble of the engines, the hum of the thrusters. Ignore all distractions, and focus on what I'm saying." Ryder paused to allow the Force to work through Ben.

Ryder could tell that Ben was entranced with the lesson.

"Now, listen to the breathing of your classmates as they meditate in their own dark rooms. Then, listen deeper. Past their breathing. Past the flow of blood in their veins. Listen. Feel."

With his eyes still closed Ben said, "I heard something. It's was like a soft voice"

"Yes, what you heard were just surface thoughts. However, with practice, you will soon be able to read deeper into someone. Know what they're thinking. See their memories. Change what they're thinking of," explained Ryder.

"I want to learn more," requested Ben.

"Fine, about what," asked Ryder?

"I want to know about sight," responded Ben.

"Ah, seeing through the Force," said Ryder. "There is a similar handicap that tends to occur among those strong in the Force. They neglect their skills. Some believe they no longer need them. The greatest wielders of the Force are those that maintain some grounding to the more… physical realities of the universe."

"What do you mean," answered Ben.

"Some wielders of the Force have mastered piloting… others the ability to fix, repair, and build from simple moisture vaporizers to more complex machines, such as droids and vehicles. One's abilities to understand the human body and its ailments, for example, can make your powers within the Force more complete, more powerful when you attempt to repair the cellular damage of another. And others have mastered the subtler work of politics: persuasion. Don't think that a galaxy cannot be conquered with words alone. When skills like these are honed, one's ability with the Force become that much stronger. My warning to you is this: do not rely on your comrades to compensate for your weakness in a skill. I know I told y'all that that's what teammates are for, but there will be times they will not be there to help you when you need it the most." Ryder slowly stood up and walked towards the door.

"Thank you, Master," whispered Ben as Ryder quietly left.

"One more panel to go," said Katie to herself.

She grabbed the stick welder and began welding the last black panel onto the Rogue Shadow. It took her a few minutes, but the job looked brand new.

"Doesn't it look good?" she asked one of the other mechanics that was walking by.

The mechanic was so busy that all he did was give a thumbs up and went right back to going to the ship he was working on.

'Thank for all the appreciation,' she thought. 'Might as well give Ryder a call.'

She pulled out her phone and dialed Ryder's number.

"Hello?" he answered.

"It's Katie. The Rogue Shadow is ready; come check her out," she said.

"Hell yeah! I'll be up in a minute."

*Click*

He was off the phone.

"Well that was quick and easy," she said putting her phone back in her pocket.

She grabbed some Windex, crawled to the cockpit window, and began cleaning the cockpit window. When she was done with the outside, she got down and then cleaned the inside.

It took thirty minutes for Ryder to show up. He was wearing his normal black and brown Jedi robes with his lightsaber on his side. However, he now had something else by his side as well. It was the same R2 droid that left with Ryder a few days ago.

"I see. You got tired of that bucket of bolts and decided to bring him back, didn't you," said Katie from on top of the ship.

"No," he said laughing. "I actually kind of like him a little. Not that bad."

He walked up closer to the ship and began inspecting it. "Wow, nice sensory rays and submach drive."

"The best," she said. "It's the fastest ship we have and most likely in the entire galaxy. It has the best cloaking technology, excellent mach-speed engine, sleeping quarters, a med bay, a workshop, and even a meditation room that doubles as a training room. It's got the complete package. I'm surprised that you're allowed to even use this bad boy. Not many people can repair it."

"So, what you're telling me is that I need the best mechanic in the world to keep it in optimal conditions," he said.

"Don't quote me on that, but it's just my opinion," Katie responded.

"I think I'm in love," he said. "With the ship that is." He smiled and kept walking around the ship.

"When is it ready to go?"

"It can leave whenever your mission starts."

"Perfect!" said Ryder in excitement. "I should probably go gather a crew then."

"You might want to talk to General Hall and the others before doing that. They might have some people in mind for you to take," Katie said leaning up against the Rogue Shadow.

"Thanks, Katie. You the best!" said Ryder as he began running out of the workshop.

R2 was strolling right behind him beeping and whistling. All Katie did was throw up her hand to say bye.

Ryder was rushing down the hallway on his way to the elevator. He looked over at R2 when they arrived at the doors and said, "It time. I finally get to go on my first mission, and I'll be able to make my first lightsaber, too."

However, the droid didn't respond like he would normally. Instead, it just stood there looking at the doors. "Are you okay, R2," asked Ryder?

*bloop weeeee ring bing*

"Well, let me know when you have some candidates for the crew in mind then."

The doors opened, and they were on floor seventy-four, the briefing room. The proxy, KA-7, was the first to greet them at the door.

"Hello, there Sir Jedi. Who is this that you brought along," asked KA-7?

*Beep dooloop zing zang ziiiiiip*

"How dare you say that in front of your peers. Learn some manners you trash can!" said KA-7 as it stormed off into another room.

"Don't worry about him, R2. He gets pretty sensitive," said Ryder.

The two walked closer to the table where President Reed, General Hall, and General Rodan were sitting. They were already discussing something, so Ryder waited until they finished. He heard a word that sounded like "groups" and "precaution" but wasn't one-hundred percent sure. The three finished their discussion and turned to Ryder.

"Make this quick, Ryder. What is it," asked President Reed?

"I just came back from the workshop, and Katie has finished working on a ship for me," explained Ryder.

President Reed was the first to respond. "Good. Good. Which one is it?"

"The Rogue Shadow."

"So, you decided on the stealth ship that carries eight passengers. Why did you want that ship," asked General Hall?

Changing his look from the President over to General Hall, Ryder said, "I like the speed, sensors, and cloaking aspect of the ship. It will allow me to get to the surface easily without being detected by ISIS soldiers or any unknown enemies that might be searching that planet to see if we are there as well."

"I see. Good thinking," said General Hall.

"Okay, I approve of the ship. Just don't destroy it. It's one of our best. Now who all do you have in mind for a crew," asked President Reed?

Ryder looked up at the ceiling as he began thinking of people that would be useful.

"Why don't you sit down for a minute? This won't be something that will come easily. Remember, you are asking these people to put their lives into your hands. Whatever mistakes you make, can jeopardize their safety. So, put some thought into this," said General Rodan.

"Here are some key position that need filling: The Commander, which I assume will be you. Are you going to be the pilot as well?" asked Rodan.

"Yes," responded Ryder.

"Okay, who do you want the co-pilot to be? They will also be the second in command."

Ryder thought on this for a few moments and then said, "How about Zakee?"

"Unfortunately, Zakee and a few others are out on a mission right now. You won't be able to select him, Taylor, Jackson, Sarah, Clayton, Tommy, Jake, Pierce, Ridley, or Guy," explained General Hall.

"I have a suggestion," said President Reed. "Why don't you bring in Weston Tague as a gunner. He has an Imperial Arm just like General Hall, but his is a gun. His gun gets more powerful the tighter of a pinch that he is in. His experience with a hand gun will help on the ship. The other positions for that ship include: another gunner, a co-pilot, a mechanic, someone that can use complex forms of technology, a medical base soldier, and someone that could do whatever is needed."

"I like it," said Ryder. "I have some ideas for the other positions, now."

"Go ahead," responded President Reed.

"For the second in command position, I recommend Nero Slosslane. The other gunner can be, Murdoch Sletvig." He paused the think some more.

"The technology position can go to Luca Jones, and can the mechanic be Katie, from the shop, or do y'all need her here?"

General Hall and Rodan looked at President Reed who was stroking his chin. "Go ahead and take her. You will need her expertise to fix that ship."

Ryder nodded his head in agreement. "So, that leave the miscellaneous man and the medic left."

Ryder thought about his remaining options.

"Can I bring Ben Ward as the miscellaneous man? I've taken him on as a student and want to give him some more experience, and I think this will be a great start for him. I also think that he is ready to create his own lightsaber. You can ask Murdoch for information as well. I had them duel this morning, and Ben surprised us both."

"We will think that over," said President Reed. "We would like for someone with more experience to tag along, but since this will be a short mission, we will consider him. However, I do have one last suggestion for your medical staff member. Her name is Liz Keagan. She is a sensory ninja that is incredible with medical ninjutsu."

General Rodan took over. "Beyond that, everything else sounds fine. We'll send a message to all your crewmates letting them know when and where meet you for a briefing. What time is it?"

Ryder looked down at his watch, and said, "It's 4:52 PM."

Rodan continued, "Expect the meeting to take place at seven o'clock PM, and we want the ship to take off tomorrow at five in the afternoon."

"Will do, sir. Anything specific you want me to say in the briefing," asked Ryder?

"No, this all will do. Now, go ahead and go before you miss dinner," said Mr. President. "KA-7, will you escort them out?"

The proxy droid wobbled back into the room and said, "Do I really have to be near this terrible astromech droid?"

"Yes, just do it," responded the President.

*Beep bloop wizwop zip zoot*

"Not this again. Listen here, you better be happy that I'm not going to just push you down the elevator shaft," said KA-7.

*Zink peep bop weeeee*

*sigh* "I should've known that you have rocket thrusters," responded the proxy droid.

KA-7 pressed the down button and the elevator doors opened within a few seconds. "There you go," said KA-7.

Ryder and R2 walked into the elevator and pressed the button that sent them to floor, nineteen. The doors shut.

"Well R2, looks like it's out first mission. They didn't go over your job, so I will." He knelt next to R2 and put his hand on his head.

"You'll have to help out Katie a lot. Make sure she knows what needs fixing and help her fix it. That will be your main job. Don't mess it up, ya know." He patted the head and stood up.

The doors opened and the hallway surged with hungry students and soldiers. They walked down the hallway weaving around other people and almost got to the door when they heard a voice call out to them.

"Ryder! Wait up!"

He turned around and it was his brown, buzzed hair friend that he went to war with. "I'm not going to slow down. You just gotta hurry up!" yelled Ryder as he turned his back and kept walking to the Dining Hall.

He laughed a little to R2 who gave a beep in return. Nero caught up to them right as they entered through the dining hall doors. Nero's tall athletic figure had kept its shape well while up in space, unlike many others around them, but this even made him bend over and pant a little.

"I just got a text." Nero paused and took another breath. "It said that I was one of eight that had been assigned to a mission. General Hall said to meet the leader and my crewmates in the Dining Hall after everyone had eaten their food. It's yours, isn't it?"

Ryder kept walking to the food line, and when they claimed their spot, he turned to Nero with a smile. "I'm gonna get a lightsaber," he began to tease and dance. "You're gonna have to listen to my every command," he teased again.

Nero slammed his palm into his face and said, "I take back all of my excitement. The amount of embarrassment you just put me through with that dance and the fact that I have to take orders from you ruins to whole mission."

A few nearby people were covering their mouth as they laughed at Ryder's dance moves.

Nero removed his hand from his face and held it up high. "But, congrats dude. This is gonna be one hell of a mission."

Ryder high fived Nero with a loud clap.

"Hurry up, Ryder! It's your turn to get some food!" yelled someone from the back of the line.

Ryder quickly turned around and grabbed his plate while he heard Nero laugh and R2 whistle in excitement. He grabbed the cheeseburger and continued down the selection aisle. He grabbed bacon and some water for the rest of his meal and went to sit at a table.

R2 wheeled around and stopped in-between Ryder's table and the wall. Across from Ryder sat Nero, and next to them both sat two other people: Tucker an alchemist and Drex a Titan. The seats to the other side of them filled up quickly and loud conversation coursed throughout the Dining Hall.

After forty-five minutes of eating and fellowship, the students began to leave the Dining Hall. Nero kept leaning over and asking who was staying, but Ryder wouldn't give him any hints.

When everyone left the room, there were five others sitting down. Nero looked around and noticed a few of them and nudged Ryder, saying, "Good job on picking out a solid group, but aren't we missing one?"

Ryder shook his head and said, "Yep. We're missing Ben… My apprentice."

After he said that he stood up and addressed everyone in the room.

"Hey everyone. I'm Ryder Jace. I know most of y'all, but there are a few new faces in the room. We are also missing one, so were going to wait a few more minutes. If he doesn't show, then I'll just brief him later."

Ryder looked down at his watch that read, "6:04 PM." He sat down and kept talking to Nero while they waited on Ben.

After five minutes, the doors swung open with a sudden thrust and in came a figure barreling in almost tripping over their own two feet. "Sorry I'm late," he said as he stumbled to a seat at one of the front, open tables.

Ryder was laughing along with Nero but stopped as Ryder stood up and walked to the front of the room.

"Well, for everyone who doesn't already know, that was Ben Ward that just busted through the door nearly taking them off the hinges," said Ryder trying to hide his laugh. Nero was the only one that was laughing with Ryder.

"Can I get everyone to come sit at this front table, too?"

The seven others all stood up and sat on the side of the front table closest to Ryder.

"You all have been assigned to a mission under me. It's a two-part mission. The first objective is to travel to the planet, Ilum, and for me to construct a lightsaber while whoever is left on the ship maps out the planet. The reason why there are eight of us in all is that the Generals wanted us to be out there getting experience instead of being cooped up in this ship. I will tell you the second part while we are on the ship."

Ryder paused and looked at each member of the crew.

"Now, whenever I call out your name and position for the crew please stand up so that everyone can see you. Captain and pilot, yours truly. Co-captain and co-pilot, Nero Slosslane. First gunner, Murdoch Sletvig. Second gunner, Weston Tague. Mechanic, Katie Harrison. Medic, Liz Keagan. Tech. man, Luca Jones. And finally, the miscellaneous man, Ben Ward. For you Ben, this means that you'll be helping whoever needs it at that time. So, the planet that we are traveling to is on the opposite side of the galaxy, so there will be a lot of down time on the way over. You have been given permission to take up to five texts from the archive to take on our mission. Of course, the only time for reading and studying will be while we are in our fantastic ship. So, with that being said, can our mechanic come forward and talk about the ship some?" Ryder pointed at Katie to queue her to the front.

Katie stood up and walked to where Ryder had stood. Everyone in the room knew she had done this before just by her demeanor and confidence while talking.

"For those that don't know me, I'm Katie Harrison, the mechanic. The best on this whole ship, so this crew is lucky right now," she joked. "The ship we will be taking is the Rogue Shadow. It is the fastest ship we have and has an incredible mach-speed engine that is better than most others. Other than its untouchable speed, the sensory arrays onboard are top-notch. They can sense anything that comes remotely close us, and that will be a great advantage. Along with sensory rays, the Rogue Shadow is equipped with the best cloaking technology available that is undetectable by most other ships. Rest assured that no one will see us coming or going. This is a great stealth ship, but it also has deadly weapons. Highly equipped with deadly photon and laser cannons and one turret on the bottom of the ship. I'm very confident that this ship will get any job done, let alone this easy one," finished Katie as she shot Ryder a glare.

Ryder felt Nero nudge him and say, "Oolala."

Ryder got up quickly and walked to conclude the briefing. "Okay, so we leave tomorrow at five in the afternoon. First order, do not be late." Ryder was looking at Ben in the eyes.

"The sleeping quarters are rather large, so you can bring a week's worth of clothes. Assuming that we will somehow be able to wash them. Lastly, get some rest. Don't go all out on your training tonight or tomorrow. We have an uncharted journey ahead of us. One that will be full of surprises, hopefully good, and a lot of good times. Are there any questions?"

No one's hand raised.

"Perfect. I will see each of you tomorrow, then. Goodnight everyone."

Luca and Weston left close behind Liz so that they could introduce themselves. Liz was very attractive with her long blonde hair and curvy body. Next went Nero and Murdoch who followed closely behind them to slide in when they failed.

Katie walked up Ryder and said, "I'm going back to the shop to do some finishing touches on the ship. See ya in the morning." She walked out and to the elevator.

Ben was the last one in the room with Ryder. Ryder decided to walk over to him to see what was the matter. When he was about six feet away, Ryder's phone started to go off.

The song "Back in Black" by AC/DC filled the Dining Hall.

A cleaning droid from the cleaning room could be heard yelling, "Turn off that racket!"

Ryder quickly answered the phone. The only thing that Ben could hear was a series of "Yes, Sir," and at the end he said, "Thank you, Sir." Ryder hung up the phone and sat next to Ben.

"What the matter?" asked Ryder.

"I'm just a little nervous to be honest. I've only been practicing my skills for two months, and I'm already on my first mission. It's a little scary to be honest," admitted Ben.

Ryder took a pause to collect his thought. "You're right it can be scary, and it probably will be. But that's why we have eight crewmates as well. It's to make sure that when we get in a pinch, there will always be someone there to help us get out. No matter what the cost is."

Ben looked up a little frustrated. "But, what is a guy with a training lightsaber going to do?!"

Words that sounded familiar to Ryder, but he knew that he had never heard them popped into his mind. He said, "The sword does not make the warrior. Rather, it is the warrior that determines how strong the sword is. I want you to meditate on that tonight, okay?"

Ben nodded as if to say that he agreed. Ryder gave Ben a pat on the back, stood up, and said, "Good. Now, I am going to get some shut eye. I'll see you in the morning."

Ryder walked out of the room leaving Ben to just his thoughts and the background noise of the droids cleaning dishes.

'It is the warrior that determines how strong the sword is,' thought Ben.

Suddenly, the doors of the Dining Hall swung open again. It was Ryder, out of breath not to mention. He walked over to Ben rummaging through his bag.

To Ben's amazement, Ryder pulled out a glowing, blue cube that nearly put Ben in a trance. "A holocron," Ben said softly.

"That's right. I learned from it about two months ago. It's one of Grand Master Yoda's, so be sure to learn from it. Do not take it for granted." Ryder's jaw dropped and mouth opened wide as he let out a huge yawn. "Well that's my sign to go to sleep, so I'll see you tomorrow."

And like that, Ryder was out the doors once again. Except this time, Ryder didn't leave Ben with just his thoughts. He left him with the thoughts and teaching of one of the greatest Jedi to ever live, and Ben was not going to take that for granted.

_Let me know what you thought of the chapter!_

_ ~Aldon_


	18. Chapter 17: The Return to Ilum

**Chapter 17: The Return to Ilum**

Ryder woke up to the sound of his alarm clock blaring in his ear; he needed to make sure that he would wake up for his big day.

'Finally,' he thought. 'I'll be able to get my own lightsaber.'

He rolled over to his side and read the clock. It was "9:00 AM." He threw the covers off, slid out of bed, and put his pants, shirt, and a hoodie on. His pants were black, dry-fit sweatpants that were tan and had an elastic band at the bottom that wrapped around the middle of his calf. His shirt was blue and dry-fit while the hoodie was just solid white. The hoodie was not big and bulky. It was thinner than traditional hoodies. It made it seem like it was for the summer.

Ryder walked over to his closet and decided that he was going to wear tennis shoes for now. He reached down and picked up a pair of gray Adidas instead of his Nikes.

This would be the last time that he'd wake up in this room for a while it seemed. This was his first actual mission, and he didn't know what to expect from it.

Ryder threw his black backpack with neon green elastic strings in the front, around his shoulders and walked out the door.

Immediately after he walked out his door, R2 came zooming down to hall and about ran into Ryder.

"Hey! Watch it, R2!" he yelled out, but the droid just whistled loudly and kept going down the hall.

"I guess I'll find out what that was all about later," Ryder said to himself.

He walked in the direction that R2 came from to go to the elevator. While waiting for the elevator, Ryder pulled a book out of his backpack titled, 'Ancient Sith.' He had a bookmark about the quarter of the way through the book, and he flipped to the marked page. He began reading the text:

"Darth Traya was a Sith Lord that was extremely gifted with the Force. Even though her eyes atrophied from disuse, she could see by relying on the Force. She strongly believed in the will of the Force, viewing it as a conscious entity that controlled the destiny of all living beings. Thus, she thought of the Force as a cruel being and sought to destroy it. A Jedi Consular and Sith Lord of prodigious power and skill, Darth Traya used a wide variety of Force abilities, including Force Horror, Force Speed, Force Crush, Force Cloak, Force Scream, Force Lightning, the mind trick, and many more."

The doors to the elevator opened, so Ryder closed his book and walked into the elevator. He saw that the button for the dining hall was already lit up, so he stayed in the corner and opened the book again.

This time he read into the powers and abilities of Darth Traya. He was interested in her because she was both a Jedi and Sith, and her wisdom overshadowed the majority of other Sith Lords. Her teachings were more in depth than the others because it seemed like she just knew exactly what to say.

The doors to the elevator opened, and the hall was brimming with other students. It seemed like they were in-between classes or every single student was in this hallway for a strange reason. Ryder bobbed and weaved to the dining hall and entered through the double doors.

He walked to one of the robots and asked for a box protein bars, and the robot went to the back and grabbed a box of peanut butter chocolate chip protein bars.

'I hope everyone likes these,' thought Ryder.

He put the box in his backpack and left for the hallway once again. This time, R2 sat patiently on the other side of the double doors for Ryder to come out.

*Bleep woo bloop skreet teet looooop*

Using one of his robotic arms, R2 grabbed two books out of his hollow compartment in his chest and gave them to Ryder.

"Thanks, R2. Let's see if this works," Ryder paused and let R2 get ready. "Okay, who is Master Yoda?" he asked the droid.

Suddenly, R2 projected a hologram that looked like a page taken from a book. The title, "Grand-Master Yoda" appeared at the top of the page, and beneath the picture, a column of facts appeared. These facts described Master Yoda's abilities, teachings, and even personality.

"Good job, R2! This looks really good," he said as he kept giving out other Jedi names. "Now, I want you to do the same with these two books," Ryder said pulling out the books, 'Ancient Sith' and 'Form Two: Makashi.'

"Remember, don't lose them. I have to put them back before we leave," he reiterated as R2 put the two books in one of his compartments. R2 scurried off to some room to record the book while Ryder continued to the elevator. This time, he was heading to the archive.

Ryder arrived at the doors to the archive and placed his eyes and hand where they needed to be scanned. A loud ding sounded as metal rods slid out of place, allowing the archive door to slide up into the ceiling.

Finding the section in the bookshelves for lightsaber forms, Ryder reached into his backpack, took out the Form Three book, and placed it on the shelf. Moving a few feet down, he found the spot where he took the 'Ancient Jedi' book. So, he put that book back as well.

'No need for these if R2 has them stored in his system,' he though.

Done with returning his books, Ryder walked towards the holocrons. He had already listened and learned from Grand Master Yoda in the Jedi holocron, but Ryder hadn't opened the Sith Holocron.

Reaching out and picking up the red holocron, Ryder noticed that it felt different than the previous Sith holocron. This one seemed angry. It was passionate. It was in pain. The difference between this one and the previous intrigued Ryder… A lot.

Ryder looked around. There weren't many people in the archive room. Those who that were around, were sitting at tables on the other side of the room reading. Quietly, he took it to the corner room where he had learned from Master Yoda.

In the small, barren room, Ryder sat down indian style in the middle of the floor. He put his backpack aside and placed the now glowing holocron in front of him. The glow casted a red hue on the walls that already had red cushions. He felt nervous opening this on. It didn't call out to him like the other. It seemed like it didn't even want to be opened.

Ryder took a deep breath.

"Okay," he said reassuring himself. "It can't be that bad."

Ryder closed his eyes, placed his hands on his knees, and reached out to the Sith holocron with the Force. Knowing he had to use the Dark Side to open it, Ryder allowed the emotions from the holocron to fill him.

The pain of not being trusted by anyone. The anger from the memories that Dr. Rogers reminded him of. Some of the memories he didn't know of, but they made him furious. Concentrating on the emotions, Ryder could feel the corners of the holocron twist and slowly come off the pyramid holocron.

Suddenly, Ryder heard a voice. I sounded prideful and angry. "I see through the lies of the Jedi. I do not fear the dark side as you do. I have brought peace, freedom, justice, and security to my new empire!"

Ryder opened his eyes. Within the red light emitting from the holocron. A blue image of a young man with hair that went down to his shoulders, stood looking into what seemed to be a distant person. His eyes glowed yellow and red.

The blue figure slowly faded away. In its place, a larger blue image appeared. This figure wore a suit of armor that had some control panel on the front, and over his head was a large mask.

*_khhht PHHRRRR*_

"Give yourself to the Dark Side. It is the only way you can save your friends."

Ryder looked intently at the Sith Lord in front of him. The pain, anger, and hatred that came from the holocron, really came from this Sith.

Ryder bowed his head and said, "I have opened this holocron in search of wisdom and strength, Lord Vader"

*_khhht PHHRRRR*_

"And why should I teach you? You are a servant of the light," said the Dark Lord.

"You struck fear into the heart of your opponents; something that I want to do. Just like how you wanted to protect what you love, I wish to do the same," explained Ryder.

"This holocron holds a special power, and you are too weak for that power," said Vader.

"I can handle it," Ryder protested!

"Go against what I say again, and I will make sure you never see the secrets of this holocron," said Darth Vader as his blue image began to fade into the red light of the holocron.

The corners of the holocron, thankfully, returned to the red pyramid. It would have sucked if this one was a one-time use holocron. The red light receded into the holocron, and Ryder stood up.

Picking up the holocron, Ryder said, "I'll try again when I get back from Ilum." He threw his backpack over his shoulder and left the room.

Looking at his watch, he noticed that it read, "1:34 PM."

'Damn, I've spent long enough in here,' he thought. 'I need to grab some books for the trip though.'

After about ten minutes of looking, Ryder picked up a book called, 'Plasma: The Fourth State.' He put the book inside his backpack. After five minutes of more looking, Ryder had grabbed, 'Expert Strategizing,' 'Mastery in Hand to Hand Combat,' and 'The Art of the Body Flicker Technique.' Ryder had a total of five books in his bag now: the four he just grabbed and the Force applications book that R2 had found.

Once he finished, he threw his backpack over his shoulders and left the archive. Ryder had overheard people talk about the physics of chi blasts, and they said that they are made of plasma. Chi blasts had been the most power attack that he had seen yet, so that is why he chose that book. If he could find a way to use the Force to stop them, it would help him a lot.

Ryder was back on the elevator and headed back to his room to get all his clothes and other items ready for departure. Flipping through his new book on plasma, he found a quote that said, "…when this plasma is heated to high enough temperatures, it becomes more solid." This peaked his interest even more about the physics of plasma and how Z-fighters use it.

Add something?

Ryder got to his room, went inside, and began packing a suitcase full of clothes and any other items he would need on the mission. He threw in ninja pants, he liked them better than Jedi pants. Sweatpants, sweatshirts, jackets, shirts, shoes, battle gear, and lastly, his picture that was on his dresser. He put the picture face up on top of his clothes. The picture was of him and his dad out in a random field. The sky was blue, and the tall grass in the background was rolling. That was a good day for him. He and his dad had just finished shooting dove in the country outside of Montgomery. It was one of his last moments with him.

Ryder made the memories leave his mind as he said, "Okay. What else." He looked around the room and saw his backpack sitting in a corner. He picked it up and put it down on his bed.

"Okay, I have my new books, journal, some snacks, and what else." Ryder stuck his hand farther down inside the backpack and pulled out a tape recorder.

"How the hell did this get here," he said. Just as he finished, he heard a knock on the door.

"Come in!" Ryder yelled as he put all the objects back inside his backpack.

It was General Rodan. He had a book under one arm and held a coffee mug in the other.

"Hey, just wanted to stop by before everything got hectic. I brought you a book you might like," said Rodan as he walked over to his desk.

"Okay, what is it?" asked Ryder intrigued.

"Force Abilities of the Ancient Jedi," said Rodan. "Since I don't have the Force, I can't open it, but it's a book teaching about powers that nobody has ever seen. Or at least a long time, or something like that," he rumbled on. "I took this from a confidential library on the top floor that have a single bookshelf with books containing powerful abilities for other powers too. I think that the abilities in this book will help you in your mission and future missions." Rodan tossed the book to Ryder.

He caught it and spun it around to look at it. The book began to glow a soft blue color as it loosened the pages. Ryder flipped the pages with ease and saw a description that read, "The caster manipulates the nervous system of the target's eyes, creating an illusion."

Ryder looked at the name of the ability, and it said, "Force Illusion."

Ryder looked up at Rodan and closed the book. "Thanks a lot for the book! I'm excited to learn them," he said laughing.

"Well, I know you're going to do fine with learning them. But I've got to head out, so good luck with your mission. I hope you make at least a cool looking lightsaber," he joked around as he walked out the door.

Ryder turned around and said goodbye to General Rodan.

Ryder turned back around and put his new book inside of his backpack. He was ready to go. He began to do a check-list pointing to each item and saying check afterwards.

"Backpack with protein bars and books. Check. Bag with clothes and battle gear. Check. Another bag for normal clothes with a small bag with shoes. Belt and lightsaber. Check and soon to be check," Ryder said as he pulled off his hoodie and pants, and he put them in his bag.

He put on his brown leather boots, light brown Jedi pants, and the dark Jedi tunics that were hanging up in his closet. The same kind of tunic that Anakin Skywalker wore as a Jedi. Ryder looked at his watch and it read, "4:38 PM." He zipped up his bags, strapped his backpack up on his back, and began walking to the hanger with his other bags in his hands.

Ryder got to the hanger and the only people there were mechanics, ship admirers or students, and other students practicing for their flight test.

He walked over to the Rogue Shadow which looked like a shining, back diamond. Behind him he heard a loud beeping sound that came with the sound of cans and tools knocked on the ground.

'What the hell,' thought Ryder?

But, of course it was R2 racing towards the Rogue Shadow and Ryder. He stopped at Ryder and activated a hologram that displayed a picture of a man that had a respirator around his mouth and nose. The title caption beneath read, "Darth Malgus."

Ryder patted R2 on the head and said, "Good job, R2, and just in time as well."

R2 retracted the hologram, beeped, and went aboard the starship. Ryder picked his bags up and followed R2. Ryder walked up the loading ramp and into the main hold.

The first person he saw was a blonde hair twenty-year-old sitting at a table reading a book.

Ryder walked over to him and said, "Hey, I don't think we've really met, but I'm Ryder."

The man stood up. "It's good to meet you, Ryder. I'm Weston Tague," he said as he reached out and shook Ryder's hand.

"I think everyone else is in the room lounge right in there." Weston pointed through the door at the end of the room that was in view of another door.

"It's right in there," Weston said.

"Thanks," said Ryder as he picked up his bags and began to walk towards the next door.

He opened it and saw four couches surrounding a single table. On the other end of the room was a couch on the wall facing a few tables and chairs. The left wall extended all the way down to a single door. It was a hallway about ten feet wide and more doors on the right wall.

"What's up cap'n?" asked Nero, who was sitting in one of the couches. "Welcome to our temporary home."

"Your room is down at the very end of the hallway by the way." Luca, Katie, Ben, and Murdoch were sitting on the couches too.

"This ship is insane!" said Ryder as he turned around. "I mean it's a lot bigger than how it looks on the outside." He did a three-sixty to take a few more looks at the room. There was a whiteboard on the wall near the tables and chairs.

"I'm going to put my bags up really quick," said Ryder as he walked down towards the hallway Nero pointed out.

Walking down the hallway, four doors were on the left and right. Just enough for each person to get their own room. Upon reaching the last set of doors, Ryder saw his name on the door on the left.

To the left of the door was a square, red button. Ryder pressed the button and the metal door slid up instantly.

Upon walking in, Ryder noticed that the room wasn't very big. There was a full bed up against the wall straight ahead. A dresser rested against the right wall, and a shoe rack sat right next to it on the ground. There wasn't much free room in there. Just enough to sit down and meditate.

Placing his bags on the bed, Ryder took his clothes and divided them into different drawers in his dresser. There was one drawer left over, so he put his battle equipment in that drawer. That consisted of his gauntlets, a location beacon and the receiver, a glowrod (a rod that produced more light than a lightsaber), an oxygen mask, and food and nutrient capsules.

Once his bags were empty and their contents put away, Ryder slid all his bags, except for his backpack. That, he laid against the left wall.

'It's time,' he thought smiling.

Ryder walked back to the lounge area, and everyone, including Liz and Weston, were at the couches talking. Once Ryder entered the room, the common chatter stopped and everyone directed their attention to Ryder.

"Everyone. Thank you for joining me on this mission. It won't be the most exciting, but it will be a fun and cool experience. At least we get to leave the ship," Ryder said with a chuckle. Instead of a laugh, a few people only exhaled forcefully out of their nose.

"So, like I said yesterday. Our first objective is to travel to the icy planet, Ilum. There, Ben and I have been given permission to make our own lightsabers. When we get there, I'll decide who gets to stay on the ship. That crew will fly around the planet and map out its geography and scan for tunnels and caves." Ryder paused and looked at Ben who had a large grin on his face.

"Congrats, Ben," Ryder said. "You've earned it. Your abilities and power have grown tremendously, and since we are in a full-fledged war, the President agreed that you have shown enough promise to warrant you coming and building a lightsaber."

Murdoch and Katie, who were sitting next to him, gave him a pat on his shoulders. He was now, visibly excited and focused for the mission.

"Once we get picked up, we're going to fly to Korriban. It is a planet between the two suns. There, our mission is to search the caves for an ancient Sith's lightsaber and a purple holocron. Ben, our job is to continuously listen for it calling out through the Force. This is our main mission. It's a must that we at least find the holocron because intel says that ISIS is also looking for it, and it's only a matter of time before they go to Korriban. If there are any question, now is the time to ask them," said Ryder as he finished his speech.

"What happens if we come across ISIS soldiers while on Ilum," asked Weston?

"We are to eliminate them," responded Ryder. "If we can, we should try to get any information from that. This goes for while we are on Ilum and Korriban."

Weston nodded.

Ryder looked at the rest of the crew looking for any more question; no one raised their hand or spoke up.

"Okay, good. Now, to refresh on our duties while on the ship. I will be piloting the ship, and Nero will be co-pilot. Luca, you will be working as our technician. That is, you'll be in charge of the sensors and cloaking of the ship. Katie, you will be the general mechanic of the ship. R2 will be helping you with whatever you need," Ryder said patting R2 on the head.

"Oh brother," mumbled Katie.

"Ben, you'll be helping Katie and Luca most of the time. Try and learn from them. However, if need be, you might work some as a gunner too. Murdoch, I want you to man the photon and laser cannon. Lastly, Weston. With your knowledge and skill with the use of a gun, I want you to man the turret."

Everyone nodded at the announcement of their position.

Ryder looked at his watch. "It's 5:05 PM, crew. I think it's time to get for take-off," he said with a straight and excited face.

Every stood up, ready to take orders.

"Everyone, assume your stations, and let's get outta here," commanded the captain.

Weston climbed up a ladder that took him to a three-hundred and sixty-degree gun turret on the top right of the ship. Katie showed Murdoch to a desk that was right outside the walkway that led to the cockpit. The desk had a large screen and one handle that was used to control the cannon turret.

"This operates the rocket/photo cannon," explained Katie. The handle controls where the cannon aims and moves, and the button on top of the cannon is for when you want to fire."

Katie pointed to a switch that was beneath the screen and said, "This switch changes the cannon from photon to rocket and vice versa."

"Okay, I think I get it," said Murdoch sitting down in the seat.

Ryder and Nero walked into the cockpit and sat in the two main chairs.

"Are you ready for this," asked Nero?

"Oh yeah," responded Ryder. "Honestly, I'm a little nervous leading y'all into this mission, though."

Giving Ryder a pat on the shoulder, Nero said to him, "You've done this countless times for me, and hey, I'm still here, aren't I?"

Ryder turned to his close friend. Someone he fought night in and night out with while in the deserts of Pakistan. "Thanks, man. It means a lot to have you by my side for this."

Ryder looked at the control panel in front of him. He hadn't flown many ships as a soldier for America, but he had read a few beginners manuals.

It felt natural for him to be flying the ship. Something that came to him easily, he guessed.

"Turning the engine on, now," said Ryder as he flipped a red switch.

The engines ignited with a roar.

Ryder pulled a lever down that was in the middle of the dash board.

The Rogue Shadow picked up off the floor of the Slipknot and began to levitate in the air.

"This is your Commander in Chief, President Reed," he said over an intercom in the Rogue Shadow. "Good luck on your mission, and make sure nothing happens to any of you. Regardless if you retrieve the holocron, the most important thing is that all of you come back uninjured and ALIVE. If you need any assistance or have a question, call us. Also, be sure to have at least on person at the com link so that we can keep in touch with you if anything escalates. With all this being said, good luck and be safe. Over and out."

The com signal went out with static.

Ryder pressed the speak button and said, "Thank you, Mr. President. Don't worry. We'll all be back better than ever."

The President didn't respond and left it how it was.

Ryder grabbed the handles and pushed them forward sending the Rogue Shadow out of the Slipknot and into the void of space.

"Lucas, punch in the numbers for the planet Ilum into the navigation system and see if there is a close route. If there is, select it and yell it up to us," Ryder said into the communicator that was connected to the tech room.

Lucas walked over to a panel in the tech room and typed in the corresponding numbers for Ilum. The scanner gave him a match with the distance to the frozen planet.

He read out, "The closest mach-speed lane that will take us there without hitting anything will be this path."

Lucas recorded a series of numbers that was the route for mach-speed traveling. "Ilum is about a three day's flight away from there

"Perfect," said Ryder.

He pressed a button that let him speak to the entire ship through the intercom system. "Get seated and strapped in, we are about to jump into mach speed. The trip there will last three days. Once we've been going that speed for a few minutes, you'll be able to move around."

Ryder looked over at Nero, who nodded while he pulled his seatbelt across his chest.

Ryder nodded his head and then placed his right hand on a lever with a yellow handle.

"Ilum. Here we come," Ryder said as he pulled the lever. The ship picked up speed in an instant, and the next thing they saw were stars and other lights flying by them.

Zakee stopped running and leaned against a nearby tree. He took a deep breath and took in his surroundings. He was in a forest full of oak trees, and it seemed like they had been walking in them for a long time. The sun was close to setting, and the darkness made these trees look creepy. Up against the trees behind him stood, Clayton, Jackson, Taylor, and Chad. Jackson was flying up above the trees to get a better view of the surroundings.

"Let me see if I can sense anyone's presence from here," Jackson shouted down!

"Okay! Go ahead," yelled Zakee in return!

Jackson closed his eyes.

'Where is everyone,' he thought?

His eyes were searching everywhere on the surface for any source of life.

'There y'all are.'

"About a mile ahead, there is a city with a large gate out front. Follow me to it," said Jackson as he descended to the ground. Once he landed, he ran in the direction in which he saw the gate.

Without hesitation, the four others fell in behind Jackson. Taylor caught up to Ryder and looked at him saying, "So, how is it having Ryder with us in the military?"

Zakee looked at Taylor, grinned and said, "It's been great! I like having someone here that I grew up with. Why you ask?" asked Zakee.

"I don't know. You've just been more quiet and too yourself since he's gotten here. That's all." Taylor turned his head back forward and dropped back.

Ziggy didn't know what to make of this. He thought that he had been the same. Yeah, he was a little jealous of all the attention that Ryder was getting since he was mastering things at an extremely high pace, but that's the way it went some time.

Within a hundred yards of the gate, Jackson could see a sign next to it that included strange symbols.

Clayton walked up and said, "These writing is an ancient language from the early days of the Chinese. I think what it says is, 'Inside hides the hide of the tough. Inside hides the light that lights the words. Scale the wall to achieve. Read the stone to see what the stone says. Remember that heights are overcome by your fears. You are weak. Seek out the strong.'"

Clayton took a step back and looked at Zakee who had a straight face.

The Rogue Shadow exited mach speed and came to an abrupt halt. They had been in mach speed for about three days. Now, in the distance was a bright light that looked like a distant star.

Ryder was sitting in the pilot's chair starring at the star. "Do you think that that star is Ilum?" asked Nero. Ryder sat back in his chair and closed his eyes.

"Hey, Ben! Look at the map and see if the star that's ahead is Ilum!" yelled Ryder to Ben who was in the back of the ship.

A few seconds passed by before he heard Ben yell back, "Sure thing!"

Ryder stood up and turned to the exit of cockpit and patted Nero on the shoulder saying, "Well, I'm gonna leave the flying to you."

"What're you about to do?" asked Nero.

"I'm gonna meditate with Ben some and probably teach him a few things while I'm at it," he said putting on his white hoodie.

"Okay, I'll see ya in a little bit," replied Nero.

Ryder walked out of the cockpit, hung a left, and followed the hallway until he reached the training room. He opened the door and saw Ben sitting down in the middle of the entire room. Ryder walked slowly behind Ben, sat down, closed his eyes, and began meditating.

All he saw was just a black void. A small light in the distance showed itself and slowly got bigger as it got closer. The speed in which the light began getting closer got faster and faster. Next thing Ryder knew, he was looking at a cave that was on the side of an ice mountain.

His vision slowly began to go deeper inside the cave. A purple color began to shine bright down a long dark cave passageway. His vision stopped, and out walked three figures in long dark robes with a hood over their faces. Their robes had gold trim on the borders of the robes and a light color at the bottom. The three figures stood around the glowing purple object and began to chant a phrase.

"From the dark, we found you. The color that only signifies royalty. I call upon the ancient Lords to lend me their strength." The three figures outstretched their arms and concluded with, "Into the light, we open you!" A bright, purple light flashed, and Ryder opened his eyes.

'What the hell was that all about,' thought Ryder. I wonder who those people were. They had a strange design to their robes, one that he had never seen before. Oh well. There are only.' Ryder paused and looked at his watch, seven hours until we get to Ilum.

Ryder stood up, placed his hand on Ben's shoulder and said, "Before we get there, I have one more ability that I want to teach you."

Ben turned his head around and with an orange and red glare in his eyes, he nodded.


	19. Chapter 18: Lava, Haze, and Hollows

**Chapter 18: Lava, Haze, and Hollows**

The Rogue Shadow was about thirty minutes away from Ilum. It was just a matter of getting everyone's supplies together at this point.

Ryder had on gray ninja pants with tape wrapped around his ankles up to his shins. He had on a dark gray long-sleeve shirt with light gray gauntlets around his fore arms. Around his chest, Ryder had a light gray flak jacket to match the gauntlets. Around his waist was the handy utility belt.

Ryder had packed food and nutrient pills into his utility belt. Clipped to the right side of his belt was his training lightsaber. He had some extra nutrient supplements just in case something happened to one of the other's supplies. Nothing else was required since the Rogue Shadow would be close by at every moment until they would go down beneath the ground. Ryder grabbed his empty back pack and walked into the main hold.

Ryder gathered the crew to have their last meeting before land on the ice planet's surface.

Everyone, but Nero who was piloting the ship, was accounted for around the table, so Ryder opened up and said, "Okay, first things first: the people who will be going down to surface with me and Ben. Murdoch, Luca, and Liz to come with us. Everyone else will be in the Rogue Shadow. I want Nero to be the pilot while I'm gone. Weston, you'll be in charge of the guns onboard, and Katie, you'll need to be on here just in case something goes wrong with the ship."

Ryder stopped and pointed at Nero. "You're going to be the captain while I'm gone, so everyone make sure to listen to Nero when he gives out orders. And please make sure I come back to this ship with it in one piece."

"What?!" said Katie in pure shock. "You're gonna put Nero in charge? He's liable to somehow blow up the ship with one string!" Her jaw dropped so far that it was about to hit the ground.

"Yes, Katie. He is my right hand and he has a lot of experience with flying," said Ryder.

Katie didn't argue anymore. She just folded her arms and pouted.

"So, back to the mission. Me, Ben, Liz, Luca, and Murdoch are going to go down on the surface and look for the right tunnel to take while everyone else stays on board and watches out for hostiles and maps out the planet. The whole trip down there shouldn't take more than ten hours at the most."

"We're coming into the atmosphere right now, captain," said Nero from the cockpit.

"Okay. Ben, Murdoch, Luca, and Liz, make sure you have everything that you'll need down there. I want us to be off the ship and gone within five minutes of landing," explained Ryder.

"Sounds good, boss. Everyone here has their supplies packed and ready to go," said Liz back to Ryder. She picked up her backpack and stood awaiting orders with the others.

"Good," replied Ryder . He turned to Ben and said, "Follow me real quick."

Ben nodded as he followed his master out of the room. First, they left the main and walked down a hallway that was on the opposite as the hallway that led to the bedrooms. They turned right and continued to the back of the ship. Within a few yards, the two turned left into the engine room. To the back left of the engine room was another door; it led to the tech room.

The tech room had the sensory and cloaking systems. It had more detailed maps, and screens that showed the condition of every part of the ship and engine.

Ryder stood next to a table that had scraps of metal laying across it.

"Ben," said Ryder. "When we find our crystals, we're going to construct our lightsabers down there. Just in case we run into trouble on the way out."

He looked at the scrap metal on the table. "We need to collect some parts for our lightsaber as well. So," Ryder said grabbing a box that looked like a military ammunition box. "We are going to put the parts in this box and take them with us."

Ryder gave the now opened box to Ben. He then reached down and picked up a small piece that looked like a knob. "This is the power cell of the lightsaber. We'll need two of these."

He gave them to Ben, who put them in the box. Ryder passed him all the components needed to assemble a lightsaber along with some scrap metal in case they wanted to add anything.

"Alright, here's a fusing pen for welding pieces together." Ryder handed Ben a metal stick about a foot long. One end had three prongs that came together at the tips. Extending to those tips was a small rod that was used to deliver an electrical current that was used to weld.

"That's it," Ryder said to Ben who closed the box. "Put it in the backpack. You're in charge of it, so make sure nothing happens to that backpack."

Ben put the box in the backpack then strapped it around his shoulder. "Good to go," he said.

"Okay, let's head back to the others. Are you excited," Ryder asked as he led Ben back to the main hold.

"Oh yeah! I didn't think that I'd be able to build a lightsaber this quick," Ben said.

"Yeah, it's pretty exciting. What color do you think your blade will be," asked Ryder?

"I hope green. That's my favorite color, and it's the same as Master Yoda's lightsaber. What about you?"

"That would be really cool. I'm not too sure. Maybe, blue? I'd actually like a color that's rare to come by," explained Ryder as the two reached the main hold.

"We're descending, Ryder," said Nero from the cockpit.

The Rogue Shadow began to descend to the ground as the group gathered their bags and headed to the landing platform. A green light flashed above the door right before it opened, and a walkway extended to the ground.

Ryder grabbed his dark gray parka that had white fur around the hood. The squad followed him down the ramp and onto the frozen ground.

The ground was covered in snow and ice due to the natural low temperature of the planet. Mountain ranges and valleys surrounded them in every direction. The air bit as each breeze whistled by them

"I hope everyone brought enough warm clothes because it is freezing right now," complained Murdoch.

"Stop gripping, soul freak," Liz said as she snapped back at him.

"How about you come at me, four eyes!" rebutted Murdoch as Liz pushed up her glasses and got ready to hit him.

"Can you two cut it out just for a few minutes?" yelled Ryder at the two that were arguing. A few veins were popping out of his neck, so the others knew he was being serious.

"Okay, we're done. Go ahead with whatever you were doing," said Murdoch gruffly.

Ryder looked back at the top of the ramp where everyone else was ready to say bye to them. In the front was Nero. He was standing there leaning against the side of the ship with his arms supporting him.

"Don't get too reckless out there," he yelled out. "I know how you can get sometimes."

Ryder grinned softly and said, "I'll do my best. See y'all soon. Make sure you wait for my signal before coming back down." Ryder turned around and began walking away from the ship.

A voice came from behind him, and it yelled out, "Be careful out there!"

Ryder turned around to see that it was Katie who had just yelled that. He lowered his head a little and smiled. He threw up his hand and waved goodbye as he turned back around and went the opposite direction of the ship.

Ben, Murdoch, Luca, and Liz followed closely behind Ryder as they began their journey into the frozen tundra of Ilum. On their left and right were caves on the outer parts of a mountain that looked like black holes that led to nothing. There was a constant wind on Ilum. A freezing chill that's cold enough to freeze living creatures in the matter of hours.

After walking for about thirty minutes, Ryder spoke up and said, "Okay, we're gonna take a break. Ben and I need to meditate for a few minutes to see where the cave we want to go in is located."

Murdoch released a big sigh of relief as he threw his bag on the ground and sat up against it. "Let's not stay out here for too long, Ryder. I don't feel like freezing to death today."

Ryder didn't respond. He was already sitting down with his eyes closed, listening to his surroundings. Liz was the one that chimed in and said, "Do you think that there are any animals here we need to worry about?"

Ryder closed off the noise of Murdoch and Liz talking, and instead, he focused on the Force.

It's pulled on him, and he felt how Ben was reacting to the pull of all the kyber crystals on this planet. They were calling out to the two of them in hopes that they would soon have a master to serve.

After listening to the sound of the crystals buzzing for about thirty minutes, Ryder found a faint hum that was masked behind the louder ones. The soft hum gradually became more distinct his head, and he couldn't shake it away. Ryder focused on the sound and tried to find its source. It wasn't that far away. Matter of fact, it sounded like it was only a few hundred yards away and on the right.

Ryder opened his eyes and turned towards Ben. His eyes were already open as well, and they were looking in the same direction that Ryder had heard the humming sound.

"Okay, time to get going again," he said as he stood up and put his backpack over his shoulder.

"The place that we are going to is around three thousand yards away and on the right," Ryder told the squad.

The grouped walked for about an hour in the direction of which Ryder was leading. Everyone once in a while, one of them would stop to warm themselves by rubbing their arms or other parts of the body. They would then run back up to the rest of the group that did not stop.

About a hundred yards away was an isolated cave at the base of a mountain. "I was feeling the greatest pull from the Force at that spot. What do you think, Ben?" He pointed to the dark cave.

"I agree. That's where I feel a pull too," he responded. Ben was eager to start searching the cave for his kyber crystal so that he can finally build his own lightsaber. He's wanted to since the day he first saw them on the Slipknot during his first training.

"Alright, I guess we're going into that cave," said Murdoch beginning to walk to the cave. "So, what can we expect in there, Ryder?"

"I'm not really sure. Just be prepared for anything," he replied.

As the group started to walk to the cave, Ryder kept listening to his surrounding with the Force. Not that far away, he could hear the rush of oil running. With that sound was the noise of mechanics moving. Finally, Ryder heard a familiar sound.

*beep zip bop*

Ryder turned to left and saw a familiar white and red astromech droid. He let out a sigh and told the group, "Hold up. We've got company."

Murdoch quickly turned with his Zanpakuto in hand. "Why the hell is R2 here," he asked as he recognized the false threat.

"I have no idea," said Ryder taking out his communicator.

"Hey, Nero," he said into the link.

A few seconds passed before a voice returned. "What is it, boss?"

"Is there a crew member missing?"

The link went silent again.

"Yes. R2 has been missing since your group departed," replied Nero.

"Yeah, we noticed. He just rolled up on us."

"Sorry about that, Ryder. We were currently searching for him. We didn't want to bother the mission. We're on our way to location to pick him up."

"Don't worry about it. I don't think he'll be any trouble. His fusion welder will come in handy if our fusion pen doesn't do well. Just try not to lose anyone else," Ryder finished with a laugh.

"No need to worry. Won't happen again," said Nero.

Ryder put the communicator back in his utility belt.

"Okay. Let's head into the cave," said Ryder turning to the mouth of the dark cave. It looked like the darkness wouldn't end, but Ryder kept walking deeper and deeper into it.

Luckily, R2 had a flashlight that illuminated the tunnel for them. About two minutes into the tunnel. Torches began to appear on the walls.

As if someone magically flipped a light switch, all the torches were lit. They showed detailed illustrations and designs. Ryder walked over to a picture covered in dust. He brushed the dust off and noticed a familiar purple triangle with a silver "X" in the middle.

It looked like the same holocron that Darth Bane talked about in his own holocron. Ryder continued down into the cave. About two-hundred yards into the cave, it split into three tunnels.

All three of the tunnel openings had an inscription above their entrance. Ryder began to read them from left to right.

"When red turns to black, you can't go back."Ryder looked at the middle door.

"When the light glows purple, beware of the reversal."Ryder moved to the final tunnel entrance and held a torch in front of the final inscription.

"They're like animals, and I slaughtered them like animals,"Ryder read.

Murdoch immediately spoke up and said, "Well I say we don't choose the tunnel on the right."

*Beep loop boop*

"What was that, trash can?" replied Murdoch.

"He said that you're a wuss and for me to trust the Force," responded Ryder.

Ryder extended his hand and reached out with the Force. He pointed his palm to the first tunnel. He listened.

A whisper came from the first cave. It said, "_No, you have never faced my kind before…"_ It paused for a few seconds and then started again,_ "__Fear. Fear attracts the fearful… the strong… the weak… the innocent… the corrupt. Fear. Fear is my ally." _

Ryder turned and focused on the middle tunnel, extending his hand over that one now. Another whisper came from this tunnel. "_I will make you ash. You will fly into the sun."_

'That one was strange,' Ryder thought. 'Well, time for the last one.'

He outstretched his hand over the last tunnel and focused on the words above the entrance. He heard a dominant voice come deep from inside.

"_The weak will always be victims. That is the way of the universe. The strong take what they want, and the weak suffer at their hands. That is their fate; it is inevitable. Only the strong survive, because only the strong deserve to_." This voice sent a chill down his spine.

"We're splitting up. In order to make it to the crystal, all three tunnels must be passed through," explained Ryder.

"We can't just go through one and then come back," complained Luca.

"No," replied Ryder. "This is the only way."

Ryder turned to the group and said, "We'll need to split up into groups."

"Wait a minute," said Liz. "I actually agree with Murdoch. I think you're jumping to this conclusion too quickly."

"Look, I know you don't like this decision, but I didn't pick you all to come on this mission without a reason. All of you are very strong with your power, and I know that you can defeat whatever trial that you will face. Especially since all of you will be partnered with someone," said Ryder firmly.

"You said that all of us will be partnered with someone," said Murdoch. "There are five of us. That means you won't have a partner, right?"

"Yes," responded Ryder. He unclipped his training lightsaber. Using the Force, Ryder adjusted a knob on the inside that increased the intensity of the blade to the point where it could be used as a normal lightsaber. He clipped his lightsaber back to his belt.

"I just turned a switch in my training lightsaber that makes it act as an actual lightsaber. I read about it in a book in the archive. I am going to do the same thing to Ben's." Ben gave Ryder his training lightsaber, and Ryder flipped the switch in his too.

"Only those who are strong enough in the Force can do this," he explained. "I will be paired with R2." Ryder gave Ben's lightsaber back to him.

"Trust me. We will be fine."

"I believe you," responded Murdoch. "So, what are the groups?"

Ryder looked to Liz. "Liz, you'll be paired with Murdoch." He turned to Luca.

"Luca, you'll be paired with Ben."

Turning to the tunnels, Ryder then said, "R2 and I will take the last tunnel. Murdoch and Liz, take the middle tunnel. Luca and Ben, take the left tunnel. When I listened to them through the Force, the left one talked about fear, and the middle one talked about flying into the sun." He turned back to his crew

"Keep that in mind. I think the left tunnel will make you conquer a fear. And I think the middle tunnel will have to do with some intense heat," explained Ryder.

"What did the one on the right mention," asked Ben?

"That's not important. It will only make you worry instead of focusing on your own trial," said Ryder. "We've stayed here long enough; let's get going."

"Be careful everyone," said Liz to the rest.

"See y'all on the other side," said Luca

The three groups then disappeared into their own tunnels.

With R2 by his side holding a flash light, Ryder walked into the middle tunnel and immediately felt an eerie presence.

Ryder continued walking for what seemed like twenty minutes.

The temperature in the cave somehow kept rising as they continued down the tunnel until they came upon a small room. Out of nowhere a voice sounded.

It said, "_Have you seen blood in the moonlight? It appears quite black._"

Ryder looked around the tunnel. 'What the hell was that,' he thought?

A torch lit the end of the tunnel as a silhouette crossed the back wall. It was tall and had long arms that nearly stretched to the floor.

Ryder paused for a second. Then he slowly walked towards the figure.

The voice spoke out again and said, "It is his genius to dawn the mask, now in Hell, speaks in strained hisses and coughing as though he is hanging still... _Scio absconditis tuis. Fatum est mors tua._"

Ryder paused and his eyes widened until it seemed like he had seen a ghost. He took the hilt of his lightsaber and ignited his training blade. "Stay back, R2."

Ryder slowly walked up the shadow, and as he got about ten feet away, a torch lit up right in front of the shadow. The silhouette was shown as a large black humanoid creature that had a skull around its head.

"Its a hollow," said to himself.

Ryder spread his legs and held his lightsaber out front with both hands.

The hollow began laughing histerically as it bent over putting its hands on its knees. It slowly stood back up and said, "Corvo, vieni a morire."

Ryder's veins pulsed from his neck as he jumped towards the hollow. He slashed down on the hollow and landed trying to kick its legs out from beneath him. The hollow jumped into the air effectively dodging the attack. While in the air, the hollow threw its arms down towards Ryder, so he brought up his lightsaber to block it.

Coating his arms with Reiatsu, the lightsaber did not cut through it. Instead, Ryder was hit back into the wall. He wasn't prepared for the hollow's strength.

'Okay, its decently fast a pretty strong,' Ryder though. 'Let's try this.'

Ryder widened his stance and waited for the hollow to rush him. The hollow reared back, then launched itself towards Ryder at a high speed.

Smoothly, Ryder pivoted to the left and moved out of the way of the hollow. The hollow landed on the wall creating a small crater. It then launched itself at Ryder who was about fifteen yards away.

Prepared, Ryder held up his hand, and the hollow crashed into what seemed like to be an invisible forcefield. Ryder smiled.

He thrusted his arm forward and threw the hollow into the wall. This attack did not do much damage to it. The hollow got back up and roared.

Ryder threw his lightsaber at the hollow then ran straight for it. The hollow side stepped the lightsaber and armored it arms with Reiatsu again.

Using the Force, Ryder brought the lightsaber back to his hands and jumped at the hollow swinging the lightsaber down at it.

Predictably, the hollow crossed its forearms and blocked the attack. Ryder landed on the ground and began to slash and stab at the hollow. As if the hollow's arms were swords, it blocked Ryder's attack and even counter attacked a few times ripping Ryder's purka in the process.

After of few moments of this, mid combo, Ryder coated his lightsaber with Force lightning then spun and slashed right through on the hollow's arms.

In pain and off balance, the hollow stumbled backwards. Ryder took this opportunity to use a large and more powerful Force push to send the hollow into the wall behind it.

Upon the hollow making contact with the wall, rocks and dust flew everywhere as a larger crater was left behind the hollow.

Ryder walked up to the hollow. It didn't move. It was dead. The only sound came from Ryder's breathing and the crackles of his lightsaber. He brought his yellow blade above his head then swung it down towards the hollow's skull. Right when the lightsaber was about to touch the skull, the hollow opened and flexed its eyes and sent a forceful shockwave of spiritual energy at Ryder. It was powerful enough to throw Ryder into the wall on the opposite side of the room.

"Change of plans. It seems like a lightsaber doesn't do that much damage. So, I'll make it bend to my will," mumbled Ryder standing back up.

Ryder put his lightsaber back on his belt and slowly walked towards the hollow. Slowly, Ryder's vision started to turn red and orange. He felt power swell within him. He looked up into the eyes of the hollow and said, "Rex ego sum. Genua ante me."

The hollow roared at Ryder in return and began walking towards him.

Ryder brought his hands up to his chest then thrusted them at the hollow. The hollow paused in its steps and brought its hands up to his head. It began to thrash about. It wailed in pain with a voice so loud rocks began falling from the ceiling.

"Tui propinquos meos!" yelled out Ryder. The hollow yelled louder as its arms were stretched out like it was spread eagle. Suddenly a crack ran down the front of the hollow's skull.

Ryder dashed towards the hollow and encased his hand with lightning. The hollow saw Ryder running towards itself, so it swiped left and then right. However, Ryder's speed had greatly increased. He simply dodged the lazy swipes until he was in the face of the hollow.

Ryder reared back his hand and thrusted it through the hollow's outer skill and into its head. With a burst of lightning, the white skull shattered, and the top of the hollow's head was blown back onto the ground of the room.

Purple blood leaked out from where Ryder's hand had entered the hollow's head. Small bolts of electricity crackled around the hollows head and Ryder's hand.

Ryder pulled his hand out of the hollow and backed away. Somehow, the hollow was still upright, so Ryder waved his hand. The hollow then flew to the side crashing into the wall.

His parka was ripped in a few places, so he took it off and wiped the hollow's blood off his hand with it. Ryder's hand was stained a little purple with from some of the blood that wouldn't come off. He threw the parka to the side and walked towards where the hollow had first come from.

'Screw this flak jacket,' thought Ryder. 'It barely helped. My back hurts so bad.' Ryder threw the gray flak jacket to the side. It had a large rip nearly cutting the jacket in half.

As he walked to the open hallway, his vision started to turn back to normal. He hadn't even noticed how his vision did change.

Luca and Ben were walking down their tunnel when they felt the ground shake. Ben looked at his partner and said, "We should go help!"

"Calm down, Ben," said Luca. "Ryder knew what he was doing when he split up the groups. Any group will be able to take on whatever they face. Now, let's just focus on what we might face."

Ben swallowed and slowly got back to walking forward.

"Do you feel that heat," asked Murdoch?

"Yeah," replied Liz. "It feels like we're in an oven."

Murdoch and Liz were walking down their tunnel. It looked like a normal tunnel, except the temperature was exponentially going up as they continued forward. The two had beads of sweat rolling down their face.

"I can feel heat coming more from the walls and ceiling than the ground. What the hell is going on," complained Murdoch.

Liz took off her parka and tied it around her waist. Underneath, she was wearing a black tank top that was became narrower as it reached her neck. The tight shirt defined the curves of her breasts. She looked over at Murdoch and sighed.

"Eyes forward, perv," Liz said walking forward.

"Hey – hey," Murdoch said trying to justify himself when suddenly a loud noise shook the floor. Murdoch stumbled and braced himself with his hand against the wall.

"Ouch," he yelled as the scorching hot wall burned his hands! He pushed himself off the wall and held his hands close to his chest.

"Are you okay," Liz asked?

"I'll be fine. Let's just keep going forward," Murdoch suggested.

Liz walked over to Murdoch and grabbed his hands. "You're useless is you can't hold your sword."

She focused her chakra into her hands and began to heal them with medical ninjutsu. Green chakra surrounded his and her hands.

"Thank you. That feels amazing," said Murdoch. The burns on his hands were slowly healing. However, after a few seconds, he turned his head and looked over his shoulder.

"Did you that," he asked Liz?

She shook her head and said, "Shut up and let me focus. We've been hearing things this whole time."

Murdoch slid his hands out from Liz's grip and said, "No. That sound was different." He turned his body towards the entrance of the tunnel and said, "Listen."

"Good grief," Liz said focusing on the tunnel.

After a few seconds of listening Murdoch turned to Liz quickly and said, "There it was again. It sounded like a rock falling… but, something else was with it."

Liz focused harder on the tunnel. She heard it too, and it was different than just a normal rock falling.

"No way," she mumbled to herself.

Murdoch turned to her and asked, "What is it?"

"The reason why this tunnel is so hot," she said.

Murdoch continued to stare into the dark abyss of the tunnel that led to the entrance. Slowly, a light began to appear. It got brighter and brighter.

Liz gulped. "We need to get going. We're surrounded by lava, and that's what coming down the tunnel. We've been walking slightly downhill from the beginning, so the lava can lead us to our trial I bet."

"Let's get out of here then," agreed Murdoch.

"Ben, stay still," said Luca.

Fog was seeping into their tunnel from the walls and ceiling. Luca was decent as a sensory ninja. He could sense the fog being part of a genjutsu.

"We have to run. This fog is part of a genjutsu," said Luca.

The two began to run towards the end of the tunnel. After running for a few minutes, Ben said to Luca, "There's a large room up ahead."

"Good. It's getting harder to see with this fog," said Luca.

The fog was thick enough to where everything was hazy around them. It had collected on the ground, so it looked like the fog was a layer of gray water.

"We're here," yelled Ben to Luca.

"Okay, try and find a door," responded Luca!

Ben began to search the walls of the room in hope that he could find a way out. The coughing was getting worse by the second.

He was feeling the wall with one hand while the other covered his mouth. Suddenly, Ben came upon a metal door.

"I've found a door," yelled Ben out to Luca! He searched for a control panel that would open it but there wasn't one around it.

"Ice Style: Ten Thousand Ice Petals!"

Ben swiftly turned around and saw Luca sending a multitude of ice darts towards a black figure. As many punctured the black figure, Luca encased his fists with hardened ice.

In a blur, Luca was in front of the unknown figure. He reared back his right fist and punched the figure into the nearby wall.

Ben ran up next to Luca and ignited his lightsaber. The golden blade gave off enough light for them to identify their opponent.

"What is that," asked Ben?

Pointing at the outer skull, Luca told him, "It's a hollow. You can tell because it has a white, outer skull." Luca turned towards the metal door.

"You said you found a door," asked Luca walking towards it?

"Yeah," said Ben walking beside him. "But, I couldn't find a control panel for it."

"Well, let's have another look. The fog could have been hidi – ."

Luca suddenly stopped talking. Ben turned to his left and saw a black blade through the chest of Luca.

Coughing up blood, Luca said to Ben, "Run. It's too strong."

Panicking, Ben ignited his lightsaber, but a different noise grabbed his attention. It was the sound of the door opening.

The metal door slid up, and a figure slowly emerged from the darkness within. It limped into the bigger room.

"Ryder," yelled Ben! He could sense his Force connection with Ryder.

As the light shined on Ryder, Ben noticed that half of his left arm was missing. He had cuts and gashes from his face down to his legs. Blood ran down from his head, and his eyes were barely open.

Suddenly, a red light appeared deeper into the darkness that laid past the door. Ben knew the red light was coming from a red lightsaber.

The lightsaber got closer and closer. Within a few seconds, the red lightsaber was pointed at the back of Ryder who had fallen down to his knees.

"Don't… Don't do it," Ryder mumbled.

Ben looked up at the person who was holding the red lightsaber at his master. The red lightsaber cast a light bright enough to see just the top half of the executioner's body. Ben looked at his face.

*Clink clank*

Ben's lightsaber hit the floor and rolled away from him. His hands shook as they rose and covered his mouth.

"No," he said.

'This can't be,' thought Ben. 'How can the person that's about to kill Master Ryder… Be me?!"

The red hue of the lightsaber revealed the face of the executioner to Ben. No younger. No older. It was Ben smiling.

"Don't be scared, Ben," said the executioner. "WE made this decision."

"No… No…" Ben was shaking. Anger swelled within himself. Unconsciously, Ben began drawing a large amount of the Force into him.

"You aren't me," said Ben to his doppelganger.

The evil Ben held the lightsaber up to his own face, casting more light onto it. "What are you talking about, Ben. We're the same fucking person." He looked down at his kneeling master, then thrusted the red lightsaber through Ryder's chest.

"Nooooo," yelled out Ben!

Opened his orange and yellow eyes with force and thrusted out his arms. The large amount of the Force that he built up was released with anger and rage.

Luca looked over at Ben who was yelling as he exuded large quantities of the Force. He held his forearms in front of him and leaned forward. After a few seconds, Ben stopped and fell to the ground from exhaustion.

Ben ran over to him. The fog was gone, and he didn't sense any genjutsu chakra anymore; Ben must have dispersed it with his attack.

"What the hell just happened to you, Ben," said Luca rushing to his side.

Ryder was walking down the tunnel. Suddenly, it was as if a gust of wind came through the wall of the tunnel and made all of Ryder's clothes ripple in its currents. He knew better than to think that though.

Ryder simply looked to his left and said, "Hang in there, Ben."

Murdoch and Liz were running down their tunnel. The lava was rushing behind them but was slower than the two running. The tunnel had gotten hotter now that lava was in it. Murdoch copied Liz and wrapped his white parka around his waist too revealing a black, V-neck, short-sleeve shirt.

"I think I see an opening up ahead," he said to Liz while running and wiping sweat from his forehead.

Up ahead, there was a small rectangle that resembled a door way. Past that there was a bright light that showed them the way.

Running at top speed, they were suddenly thrown against the side of the tunnel!

"What the hell just happened," yelled out Murdoch quickly moving away from the burning wall! As he finished his sentence, a small rock fell from the ceiling and hit him on his shoulder.

Noticing this and knowing what was going to come after the rock, Liz said, "We have to hurry. The lava is catching up and it's about to come from the ceiling too."

The two got up and ran to the door way as more and more rocks began to fall from the ceiling due to whatever blast they just experienced.

"Be prepared for anything when we pass through the door," Murdoch reminded Liz.

She nodded as she picked up speed passing Murdoch.

Thirty yards.

Twenty yards.

Ten yards.

Five yards.

Liz and Murdoch flew through the opening and onto a small plat form surrounded by lava. Going at such speed, Murdoch quickly drew his Zanpakuto and drove it into the ground while simultaneously grabbing onto one of Liz's hands that was behind her.

The jolt of Murdoch's momentum coming to a halt, jerked Liz away from the edge and the lava she was going to fall into and into the arm and body of Murdoch. Her hands were on his chest as she let out a big sigh of relief.

When she noticed that she was so close to Murdoch, she blushed the slipped out of his grasp. She turned to the ocean of lava and said to Murdoch facing away from him, "Stop the lava coming towards up, and I'll figure out a way for us to get out of here.

Murdoch smiled and said, "Yes ma'am," sarcastically. He took his Zanpakuto out of the ground and sheathed it.

"Bakudo number: 39," recited Murdoch with his palm stretched to the tunnel. "Enkosen!" A yellow square filled the tunnel and waited for the lava to meet it.

"This won't last forever, so make use of the time," Murdoch said back to Liz.

They were trapped at the bottom of a giant cube and the floor was lava. All the way on the other side, at the top, was another doorway. The exit. But how would one get there.

'Katie and her alchemy would've been better suited for this than me,' she thought.

As she was observing, the lava made contact with Murdoch's yellow barrier. The yellow slowly turned to orange and was on its way to red. Once it became red, it was going to break and let the lava through.

Murdoch was about three feet away from his Bakudo spell. He could feel the intense heat of the lava, but he kept focus so that Liz could find a way to get out.

'I'd put up a rock wall instead of Murdoch's shield, but I only know mud wall,' she thought. 'Cut it out, Liz. He's doing his job, now do yours.' Her brain began to toss ideas, but none of them worked. There were enough foot holes to scale the walls and nothing on the ceiling to swing across with.

'What earth jutsu do I know that will help,' she thought for a few seconds. 'That right! I'll use an attacking jutsu for footing!'

"Hurry up, Liz! By shield is about to break," yelled out Murdoch! His shield was bright red and he could feel it start to give on him.

"Earth Style: Rock Trail," yelled Liz slamming her palm into the ground.

Out in front of her, large rocks emerged from the lava and created a path to the other side. She coated her feet with chakra and jumped out onto the first and then the second rock. The chakra helped reduce the very small about of lava running off the rocks to burn her feet.

Next, she did another series of hand seals and said, "Water Style: Wild Water Wave!"

Liz opened her mouth and a stream of water shot out and towards the surface of the first rock. Once that one was soaked and cooled off, she turned and did the same to the rest of the rocks. After a few seconds, she stopped and yelled back to Murdoch, "Come on!"

Murdoch had both hands up trying to buy Liz as much time as he could. The heat were slowly burning his hands more and more. He turned his head and saw the rocks he could use for footing.

Murdoch took a deep breath. He turned his body partially towards the rocks and let go of the shield with one hand while he let the other hold off the lava as much as it could. Quickly, Murdoch let go of the shield and jumped towards the first rock. Right before he moved his hand to jump, his mind lost focus of the shield, and it disappeared letting the built up lava rush the platform with tremendous force.

Murdoch made it safely to the first rock. The lava came within inches of catching his foot, though. He looked back at the tunnel and saw lava continuously flow out into the larger lake.

With the lava slowly rising, Murdoch looked at Liz and said, "We aren't done yet. It's rising."

"I know. I know," said Liz. "I'm thinking of a jutsu that could propel us to the doorway up there." Liz pointed to a doorway at the top near the ceiling.

"You've got to be kidding me," responded Murdoch.

The lava gradually began to climb up the rocks they were standing on. "This is rising a lot faster than it should be," said Murdoch. "Have you thought of anything yet?"

"I think so," responded Liz. "I just don't know if I have enough chakra for it."

"I say do it personally. You won't know unless you try," Murdoch said looking at Liz in the eyes.

"Okay," she said. "If you pass out due to exhaustion, you better carry me."

"I'll be right here to catch you," he responded.

The lava was about a foot from the top of the rocks.

Liz clapped her hands together interlocking her fingers. "I need to build up some chakra," she said as she closed her eyes.

Murdoch could feel energy filling her and replacing what she had already used. After a few seconds of her like this, she opened her eyes.

"Rock Thorn Bed Jutsu," she yelled out then stomped her right foot on the rock she was standing on. Suddenly, rocks that looked like thorns emerged about a foot out of the rising lava.

Liz then did a series of hand seals ending with clapping her hands and interlocking her fingers again. She then slammed her palm onto the rock she was standing on and yelled, "Rock Thorn Launch Jutsu!"

The previous rock thorns began to grow and extend in every direction. They got bigger and bigger the farther away they got from the lava. There were at least fifteen that extended into the sides of the cube and into the ceiling.

Liz stood up and turned to Murdoch. "There we go. Now let's get outta –." Her eyes shut and she fell forward. Murdoch dashed and caught her from falling into the lava.

"Now, you get to rest some," he said putting her on his back. The lava was about four inches from his feet.

Murdoch jumped from rock to rock and ran up the thorns. They were in perfect alignment for him to jump from one to another, and within a minute, Murdoch landed in the doorway with Liz on his back.

"Are you serious, another tunnel," he mumbled to himself. "At least it's cooler up here."

Ryder continued walking through the tunnel while reflecting on his fight. For some reason, he was exhausted from it. It wasn't like he used too strong of attacks that he didn't even know.

'It must've been when I blacked out,' thought Ryder. 'The last thing I remember before blacking out is being thrown into a wall. Next thing I know, my hand was in the hollow's head. What happened?'

Ryder walked for a few more minutes when suddenly, Ryder heard it. It was the crystal. He was close to it. Relieved, he kept walking.

After about five minutes, Ryder came across a large room. It looked more like the center of a cave though. He looked to his left and saw two other tunnels.

At the top of the cave was a long hole that extended to the night sky. The moonlight shone down and onto a column that looked like it was half its original size in the middle of the cave. At its base, a large cluster of clear crystals surrounded the pillar. They sparkled and reflected the moonlight around the cave

Ryder let out a deep breath then slumped down against a large rock near that column. "Now, we just wait for the others to get here," he said to R2.

He closed his eyes to rest, but he continued to listen with the Force for when the other two groups would arrive.

A light appeared at the end of his tunnel.

"We're almost there, Ben," said Luca walking to the light.

Since they left the larger room, Luca had been speculating what had happened to Ben. 'Since he had never trained against genjutsu, he must've been in one before the fog had a change to get me,' thought Luca. 'It must've been terrible enough to make him send out that powerful of a Force blast. Thankfully he did though. He cleared the room of the thick fog and revealed this tunnel on the other side of the room.'

"The end of the tunnel is only a few yards away," he said to Ben.

Walking through the doorway, Luca looked around and saw light dance on the walls of this larger cave. He looked at the source and saw a group of clear crystals reflecting the moonlight that came from a hole at the top of the cave. He looked beyond the crystals and saw a body on the ground slumped against a boulder with a red and white astromech droid next to the body.

"Looks like he had his fill," said Ryder in a soft voice.

"Damn, man. Are you okay," asked Luca walking over to his friend on the ground.

"I'm fine. Just a little tired," replied Ryder. "What about Ben?"

"He passed out after breaking out of a genjutsu. I heard him yell 'no' then trust his arms out by his sides. That's when he sent a strong Force push in all directions," explained Luca.

"Ah. Force repulse," said Ryder. "He sure does have a knack for the Force."

Luca chuckled setting Ben down on the ground then sliding down next to his high school friend. "He takes after his master then."

Ryder smiled then closed his eyes again. "It's crazy to think they a few years ago, we were in high school together. Now, we have these powers and we're on a different planet on a mission."

"Damn straight it's crazy. It feels like a movie," replied Luca shutting his eyes too.

"How long have I been walking," Murdoch mumbled to himself? "It feels like it's been an hour." Just as he finished saying that, a small light appeared far in front of him.

"That better not be lava," he said.

Murdoch placed his burnt palm close to the wall and didn't feel any heat coming from it. "Good, it isn't lava. I think I would've cried."

Murdoch kept walking for another ten minutes then saw that the light was coming from a doorway.

"Yes," he yelled! He quickly covered his mouth thinking that Liz was going to hit him, but she didn't wake up.

Ryder opened his eyes and said to Luca, "Looks like Murdoch finally made it."

Luca yawned and said back, "It about time."

Ryder and Luca watched the middle tunnel as they saw Murdoch walk in with Liz on his back. "Glad y'all could make it," said Ryder. "What's wrong with Liz?"

Murdoch set Liz down next to Ben then said, "First off, fuck this cave. That tunnel was awful. Second, fuck you Ryder for sending us through that awful tunnel. And lastly, she passed out from chakra exhaustion. She use an earth jutsu to get us out of a cube that was literally lava."

He went on to tell them of everything that happened to the two of them. Luca butted in to let him know that the blast that caused the ceiling to start collapsing was Ben. This shocked Murdoch, but he kept on telling what happened.

When Murdoch finished, he asked Ryder what was in his tunnel. Ryder explained his fight with the hollow and how he blacked out during the fight, but ended us killing it anyways.

Ryder finished his story by saying, "I'm just glad everyone is alive."

R2 whistled in agreement.

Ben's eyes slowly opened as he said beginning with a groan, "Where are we?" He sat up and looked around.

"Take it easy, Ben," said Luca. "You passed out breaking out of a genjutsu."

His memories began to flood back into his mind. He looked at Luca who didn't have a hole in his chest. Then he looked at Ryder who wasn't missing half an arm and was obviously still alive.

"Ben, what happened while you were in the genjutsu," asked Ryder?

A tear rolled down Ben's cheek as he sniffled to hold back other tears. "I had found a metal door to leave the room we were in, but it didn't have a control panel, so I couldn't open it. Then I saw a black figure with a skull around his head start fighting Luca. Luca had sent it into the wall thinking he killed it, but as we both walked to the metal door, it appeared behind you and stabbed you through the chest. Right after that happened, the metal door slid open. Ryder, you were limping into the room. Slashes all over you and half of your arm missing. Then I saw someone come out of the doorway behind you. He was holding a red lightsaber. I could see his face because of the light. It was me," he said letting the tears fall down his face. "I thrusted the lightsaber through your chest. That was the last thing I remember."

"It's okay, Ben," said Ryder hugging his apprentice. Someone he felt was like a little brother to him. "None of that happened or will it. We finally made it to the crystals. We can make our lightsabers now."

Ben wiped his tears. "But, these aren't the ones that I heard."

Shocked and confused, Ryder turned his head to the crystals and listen to them using the Force. He heard the Force vibrate within them, but the original. The hum that he and Ben had noticed was behind the back wall of the cave that they were sitting in.

"You're right," said Ryder. He stood up and walked to where he heard the hum the loudest. The wall he was at was very dusty, so Ryder used the Force to disperse that dust. As the dust flew off, writing began to glow a light blue above an outline of a door on the rock.

"What the hell," said Murdoch walking over to Ryder.

"It seems like we made it to another door." Murdoch traced the outline of the door. "Say, Ryder. Do you think that you can read it?"

"I don't know. I've only studied ancient languages of the Sith and Jedi. And then a little Spanish."

Ryder traced the letters with his finger and as if a switch flipped inside him, Ryder knew what the writing was. "This is in the language of the ancient Sith. It says, 'Those that pass, will not exit the same.'" Ryder looked over at the group with a confused look.

"Well," he paused and looked at the door. "Shall we go through?"

"We might as well. I mean, not much else that can go wrong," responded Luca.

Just then they heard a voice coming from the back of the cave. "I'm getting tired of these stupid doorways and tunnels," said Liz sitting up and rubbing her head.

"Glad to see you awake," said Ryder smiling.

Murdoch smiled and nodded agreeing with Ryder. He was happy to see that she was fine.

She stumbled to her feet and said, "Don't worry. I'm fine. I'm fine. Just a little light headed and tired."

"Well it looks like this might be the last door," said Luca.

"I hope so," responded Ryder.

Ryder walked up to the door and placed his hand on it. He felt the carvings of a strange picture on the cold, stone door. He took a deep breathe. He knew how he had to open it. Ryder focused and poured the Force into the door. As the Force was coursing throughout the door, the carved picture lit up. It showed a vast crowd of people at a base of a mountain holding their weapons above their head as if they had just achieved victory. At the top of the mountain stood one man who was holding a spear-like weapon above his head. Ryder's vision began to blur out and began to feel light headed.

Ryder opened his eyes and saw a door in front of him. Just like the one he was just in front of.

'Where am I,' he thought?

The cave was dark except for a torch that lit up the door. He walked up to it, and as if someone was lifting his arms for him, his palms were stretched out towards the door. With a sudden thrust, he used the Force to blow away the stone door, but it wouldn't budge. Ryder continued pushing and pushing; bursting through what he thought was his limit.

After a few moments of using his full strength to blow through the door, Ryder felt a surge flowing through his body. Instinctually, he pushed the surge through his hands assuming it was just the Force. A crackling noise started to become audible. In between Ryder and the wall, a light began to shine. In an instant, the crackling and the light mixed and lightning came from his hands and struck the door sending its stones back into another room.

Ryder opened his eyes and shook his head.

'What just happened,' he thought? His vision came back and as he saw the stone door begin to crumble where it once stood. Ryder stumbled forward trying to regain his strength from what just happened.

"Are you alright," Ben asked Ryder? All he and the others just saw was that Ryder pushed on it with the Force, and it crumbled to pieces.

"Yeah… I'll be fine," responded Ryder walking through the doorway.

"Wow, it looks like this place has been ransacked." After Ryder said that, he felt a tremendous pull with the Force.

"R2, shine your flashlight over there," he said pointing towards the back of the new cave. R2 turned on his flashlight and shone it in the direction that Ryder pointed.

It was there. A giant Kyber crystal that had smaller ones protruding from the bottom.

"Ben," Ryder said softly. "Here it is." He walked up to it and placed his hand on the main crystal.

"Wow," Murdoch said in astonishment. "That thing is massive."

Ben walked up next to Ryder then took the backpack off and crouched down staring at the lower crystals. "So, how does this work?" He reached at a small crystal and grabbed a hold of it. At that instant, Ben felt a strong connection with that crystal. He felt a pulse coming from it like it had its own heartbeat.

He broke it off and starred at it while it was in his hand. Suddenly, the crystal broke into two different crystals. Ryder looked down at him and said, "I think you just figured it out."

He knelt and with his hand on Ben's shoulder he said, "Now, push the Force into the crystals, try to make them shine with your essence. Your personality." Ben did as he was instructed. Everyone was staring at Ben.

He held the crystals tightly and concentrated hard on it. He sent his energy into them; every ounce that he had. Veins began to protrude from his neck and slowly the two crystals began to glow. The light shown through Ben's hands. Streams of a bright light shot through the gaps in Ben's fingers. He uncovered them, and a yellow shade filled part of the room. It was almost a golden color. Ben stopped pouring the Force into the crystals and proceeded to take deep, hard breathes. "Great job, Ben. Do you have the supplies I gave you?"

Ben pulled out the metal box from his backpack. "Good, now, R2 open the lightsaber forging book." R2 displayed a holographic version of the book for Ben to look through.

Liz and Murdoch were watching with curiosity because they had no idea how to make a lightsaber. All they were seeing was a selection of some crystals and fitting a case to them. They didn't understand the complex process of picking out the proper parts with the Force. They were just watching Ben closely. He flipped through a few of the pages and found the page titled, 'Forming the Hilt.'

Meanwhile Ryder was searching the room for the crystal that was calling out to him the most. The crystal that had spoken to him while he was on the surface. He began walking around the room. The borders of the room were lined with crystals that Ryder could put in his lightsaber.

In one of the corners, hidden by a boulder and crystals, was a small slit that could be barely passed through. The bottom was wide, but the top was narrow. While the others were focused on Ben forging his lightsaber, Ryder slid through the gap and entered another room. R2 followed close behind him.

This hidden room was pitch black without any light. As if R2 and Ryder were thinking the same thing, R2 immediately turned on his light and illuminated the entire room. It was much smaller than the last and didn't have any crystals there.

Instead, there was a stone tomb in front of him that had old candle stands next to it where the wax had already been melted down to the bottom. Ryder walked up to the tomb and wiped the dirt and dust off the top.

Without the dust on it, an inscription was revealed that read in the language of the ancient Sith, "Here lies the Ruler of Two, The Bane of all Jedi." Ryder could feel a nasty energy coming from within the tomb. He had read a lot about the Sith and knew that this was a part of their Force energy that was left behind when a Sith died. R2 strolled closer to the tomb and Ryder.

Outside of that room, Murdoch, Liz, Luca, and Ben saw R2's bright light shine from the entrance. Ben was still putting together the hilt to his lightsaber but was nearly finished.

"I wouldn't worry about him. I'm sure he's just looking around in there for a crystal too." He looked back at the silver hilt that Ben was constructing. "Just keep on building this," said Luca.

Ryder pushed the cover to the coffin onto the ground, and with a thud it cast up more dust. With R2's flashlight showing the inside of the coffin, Ryder searched it. The first thing he saw were bones covered in a dark fabric that had lost much of its color due to the wear of time. The hands were crossed over the chest of the dead Sith, and on its side, was a silver hilt.

Astonished that this tomb had not been raided yet, Ryder slowly grabbed the hilt because he was worried that the coffin could be booby trapped. He pulled it out and lowered it to R2's light. It was regular in length, but the unique part of the hilt came from the three prong-like spikes that protruded from the top. He liked the design. It looked like a weapon that could strike fear into his opponents, and the length optimized the control for the blade.

*Beep zip bing*

"It feels warm in my hand. Like I was supposed to find it," he responded. Ryder pressed the ignition switch, a purple blade sprang from the hilt. The crackles of an ignited blade filled the room; Ryder just stared at it. It was light, but confident at the same time. He felt strong with it in his hand. It was like he was holding a feather that would slice a rock in half.

*Boop bop wing ding*

"Switch the crystals," Ryder questioned R2?

'But that only changes the intensity of the beam,' he thought.

Ryder closed the blade and opened the lightsaber with the Force. He had practiced this many times with his training lightsaber.

He switched the top blue crystal with the bottom red crystal. Now the red crystal was on top. He closed the lightsaber and squeezed the silver hilt tightly in his hand. He ignited the blade, and a dark crimson color busted from the hilt.

A somber aura fell upon the cave that accompanied the dark color. Ryder stood there looking into the deep red color of his new blade. He snapped back to reality and began swinging it around to feel out the weight. It was heavier than the purple blade; it felt a lot stronger.

While Ryder was testing out his new lightsaber, Ben, Murdoch, and Liz were peering in from the crack. "Wow, a lightsaber with two colors," whispered Ben. "It even looks badass. I wish I would've put those three spikes on the top."

Ryder closed the lightsaber and put the hilt on his belt. He just stood there looking lost in space until Murdoch said, "Captain, are you all set?"

Ryder angled his head to the ceiling and opened his eyes. They were reddish orange that almost looked like the flames of a wild fire. At that moment, Murdoch could feel an ominous presence and intense pressure that seemed to be coming from Ryder. It kept getting stronger and stronger. It was making his stomach nauseous.

"Ryder," he yelled out!

Ryder blinked and looked over at his squad. His eyes were back to their natural blue color that reminded people of an ocean at its calmest. He put the lightsaber on his belt and said back a little startled, "Oh! My bad, I didn't see y'all there."

Murdoch said back, "Holy shit… Was that just because you have a lightsaber now?" He was shocked at the amount of power that he felt coming from Ryder.

Ryder pointed to the open tomb in the middle of the room. "I got the crystals from that tomb. I think they were just showing their strength."

Ben looked down at his lightsaber. It looked plain, but he knew it was one of the most powerful weapons in the entire solar system.

"Anyways, let's head out," Ryder said walking to the big crack in the wall. The others cleared the entrance before he stepped through it. He put his hand on Ben's shoulder. "I like how you made your lightsaber. It's the optimal style for mobility and force. Good job!" He walked past Ben and up to Murdoch who was walking to the middle of the whole cave where there was a hole to the top.

"Up?" asked Murdoch.

"It looks like that's the best way to me," replied Ryder.

Liz made the tiger hand sign. "Hold up," she said. "I sense a line of energies coming from behind that wall." She pointed to the left of the cave. "It's one followed by another for about thirty yards. It seems like they were summoned." Ryder walked over to the wall.

"Well, seems like that coffin was a booby trap. Don't worry, we'll be leaving in just a few seconds."

Part of the wall crumbled into a doorway that led to a hallway about ten feet wide. "Ah," said Ryder. "A trap or an exit?"

_Thank you everyone for reading this! It was originally half of this length, but I just wasn't content with it, so I added the whole idea of them taking separate tunnels. Originally, they all went into the middle tunnel and fought the hollow together. I like how it turned out though! Over 10,400 words; definetly the longest chapter so far (took me three days to write the rest of it), and it'll probably be the longest I write. I thought about splitting it up into two chapters, but it didn't feel right. Anyways, thanks for reading! Also, in case you couldn't translate what the foreign language was, it was either: French, Italian, or Latin. Comment to let me know what you thought of the chapter, or what you think might happen next. I might just give you a sneak peek!_

_See ya next time! _

_ ~Aldon_


	20. Chapter 19: The Return of Revan

**Chapter 19: The Real Ryder Jace**

Ryder started to run through the new hallway. He looked back and saw Murdoch, Luca, and Liz right behind him. Ben was in the back because he slipped up at the start.

'What move am I going to try out first,' thought Ryder.

"Target coming up, captain," said out Liz who was still searching for chakras. "Seventy-five yards."

Ryder grinned. He ignited his crimson blade and kept running. He saw a shape in the distance that turned out to be a summoned group of four clones lined up with laser guns. They began shooting at Ryder. The rest of the squad ran with peak awareness so they didn't get hit.

Ryder slashed across to the left to block a laser. Then twirled the lightsaber above his head then slashed to the right to block another. Then in a series to block the rest of the lasers, he spun one time in a circle then slices straight up in front of him somehow deflecting another blaster fire.

Ryder then dashed forward a few yards, and slashed the first clone down. He sliced upward then twirled the lightsaber around his back as he was completely bent over while taking a step, cutting down two clones. Coming out of the twist, Ryder sliced forward as he dashed taking down the last clone.

Everyone behind him were in awe. They had never seen anyone move like that, let alone him. "Holy shit. That was the Sith Saber Flurry," said Ben trying to keep up.

Ryder closed his lightsaber as said, "Okay, Murdoch. You're up now."

Murdoch grinned and sprinted to get in front of Ryder. While passing Ryder, Murdoch grinned and asked, "No restraints?"

Ryder simply replied, "None."

Murdoch unsheathed his Zanpakuto that looked like a normal katana. He held it with the blade facing up and said, "Senbonzakura: Scatter."

His blade turned into thousands of small cherry blossom petals that were flying in front and to the sides of Murdoch. "Go!" he yelled. The petals flew ahead of us at blazing speed and came back about ten seconds later. The petals lined back of Murdoch's katana and formed a metal blade.

They caught up to where another squad of four clones wtood, but they were now on the ground with multiple deep cuts all over them. "Damn. I'd hate to be on the other end of that one. Nice," said Ryder. He gave him a thumbs up and then waved up to Liz.

Liz ran to the front and steadied herself. She performed a series of hand signs and said, "Earth Style!" Suddenly, the walls slammed together and took care of the summoned clones in an instant.

"Nice, Nice! Ok, Ben. Let's see what you've got," called out Ryder.

Ben collected himself and jumped to the front.

"This is the last group. And they're only three of them," said Liz.

Ben kept his speed up and said, "Perfect."

Within seconds, Ben saw the silhouettes in front of him. He dashed forward and sliced the first clone in half. He then spun around to back hand the second clone. While in mid-spin, Ben gathered the Force in and around his lightsaber. He brought his gold lightsaber over his head and sliced down at the last guard. The lightsaber cut and the Force embedded in the lightsaber flew the clone out of the exit and into the cold of the planet's surface.

"Wow! That good job, Ben" congratulated Ryder. He was shocked to see how strong everyone had gotten. He led the group out of the cave and out into the open.

"Damn, I hated it out here," said Liz crossing her arms to keep herself warm.

Ryder pulled the communicator out of his utility belt and called the Rogue Shadow for pick up. "Shadow 2, come pick us up. I'm sending you the coordinates…" Ryder pulled out a beacon and sent his coordinates to Nero.

Nero leaned up in his chair and called back to Ryder, "Glad to have you back, boss. We're on our way." He swiveled over to a console and pressed a few buttons.

Nero turned to Katie and Weston. "Get ready, we're going back down to pick them up." The two scattered to their respected spots.

Ryder turned to everyone and said, "Nero and everyone else should be here in a few minutes." He sat down and waited for the Rogue Shadow.

Ben took out his lightsaber, sat down, and began meditating with it in hand. Before he knew it, the ship was coming in to pick them up. He could hear it as it descended. It hovered about forty feet above them. It opened the exit ramp and waited for everyone to jump. Ryder looked over at the group, gave them a slight wave, and jumped up onto the ramp. R2 turned on his rocket thrusters and flew after Ryder.

Murdoch looked at the others with a confused look and asked, "Has anyone noticed that he's slightly different?"

"A little," said Luca. "But, I just think that he's excited to have finally gotten a real lightsaber. One that has strong crystals too." The two jumped up to the ramp then Ben and Liz jumped after.

Nero, Katie, and Weston met them in the main hold where they congratulated the group on a successful mission. However, when they saw how tattered clothes were and burn marks on Murdoch and Liz, their tone quickly changed. Katie led Liz and Murdoch to the Med Bay while Weston went and got some drinks for everyone.

"What happened down there," Nero asked Ryder, Luca, and Ben.

"We were faced with three different tunnels. Someone had to go in each one, so I made us separate into groups. Ben and Luca went down a tunnel that caused the people to go under genjutsu. I went down a tunnel with R2 and fought a hollow." Ryder paused and looked in the direction of the Med Bay.

"Murdoch and Liz had it worst though. The tunnel they went through was surrounded by lava. It heated up the walls so that when they tunnel was shook and Murdoch braced himself, his hands were severely burned. Eventually, the ceiling began to collapse, and lava began to spew in forcing them to run to the bottom. When they got there, they came upon a sea of lava. Murdoch used a Shinigami spell to create a shield for the incoming lava while Liz prepared an escape. She ended up passing out of chakra exhaustion, so Ryder carried her and climbed out with her on his back. I'm proud of those two," said Ryder.

"I'm just glad that everyone is alive," Nero said back to Ryder. "However, while you were gone, General Rodan contacted us and told us to head to Korriban immediately. He has sources that say ISIS is closing in on it, so we have to beat them there."

"Okay then. Nero, you'll pilot us there. I'll go into the tech room and find a mach-speed path." Ryder walked over to Ben and said, "Meet me in the training room. I have some things I want to teach you while we head there." Ben walked off to the training room.

Nero walked over to Ryder's side. "How are you feeling, captain," he asked?

"Brand new, let's proceed as planned to Korriban. After that, we will find it," explained Ryder.

"Gotcha, and what do I say to the crew if they ask any questions," Nero asked?

Ryder began walking to the training room to where Ben was waiting, looked back at Nero and said, "I'm sure you'll come up with something. You always do." Ryder walked out of the main hold and towards the tech room.

He charted a course to Korriban then left the tech room to go to the Med Bay. Ryder walked in the doorway and told Katie, Murdoch, and Liz, "We are about to jump into mach speed, so brace yourselves for a few seconds, then you're free to do as you want."

"Sounds good," said Katie wrapping Murdoch's hands in bandages.

The other two nodded.

Ben was sitting Indian style on the ground waiting for Ryder. When they were in mach speed, they usually worked on Force training which they sat down for.

Ryder walked in the room and said, "Good job in the cave. I liked your moves when we were leaving."

Ryder sat down a few feet away from Ben. "But now, it's time to learn again."

"I'm glad everything turned out alright, Master," said Ben. "I mean. No one got seriously injured."

"I'm glad too, Ben. But now, we're going to Korriban where we might encounter ISIS soldiers. No one was ready last time they attacked. With that being said, close your eyes."

Ryder closed his eyes, and Ben did the same after. "Focus on your image of the Force. Right now, you know of the light side and dark side of the Force. The light side…"

The ball of flowing energy that was depicted in both of their minds shone bright with a clear white shine. Ben could feel an overwhelming calmness and peace coming from his Master.

"The light side is aligned with calmness and is used for knowledge and defense." Ryder paused and said in a more serious tone, "But, then there is the dark side, too."

The bright ball of energy darkened to a deep red color. Ben felt a heavy, dark pressure from Ryder. He sensed anger and an ominous blood lust. "It draws its power from the raw, intense emotions from the user. It is used from aggression, passion, fear, anger, and others. Its power is seductive."

Ryder snapped, "But, we cannot be fooled by it! It will lead you to power, but it will eat you away at the same time. However, there is a median between the two. It is called the Gray."

The ball of swirling energy in their head turned gray with flashes of white and red at random times. "It is the state of control over both. It's like you're on a tight rope, except its six inches wide. You walk the very fine line but have access to both sides. That is our goal. That is what you will train for. There is no dark or light side; there is only the Force." Ryder stopped talking and meditated.

Ben's mind was racing. What was this talk of a tight rope between the two. And then, 'There is no dark or light side; there is only the Force?' Ben sat there mulling over his words time after time again.

Ryder stood up and observed Ben meditating. Ryder closed his eyes and focused on Ben. He could feel the dark side flicker now and then, but he was still too hesitant to make that jump. He turned around and walked through the exit and to the cockpit.

The flight to Korriban in mach speed too close to a day and a half. He left for his room to take a nap to hopefully recover from his soreness. On the way there, he ran into Katie talking to R2.

"What's this I hear about you having a fight with a hollow," questioned Katie loudly?!

"It's no big deal, Katie," Ryder replied.

Nero and Murdoch poked their heads out from the cockpit and laughed at how Katie was treating Ryder.

"Shut up you two," yelled Ryder at Murdoch and Nero.

"Come on, idiot," said Katie pushing Ryder towards the Med Bay. She sat Ryder on the table and said, "R2 says that you were throw into a stone wall a few times. You even made craters where you hit it."

"R2 has a hazy memory," Ryder said in protest.

"He showed me a video dumbass and there's blood on the back of your shirt," said Katie quickly.

She turned Ryder around. "Ouch," he said. "Be gentle will ya."

"So, you are hurt uhuh," she responded. Katie grabbed the bottom of Ryder's dark gray shirt and lifted it revealing a bandage wrap that was now red.

"You call this alright? What were you gonna do, sleep this off? And when you go into battle on Korriban you die because you'll be useless? You are something else, you know that," Katie said pissed off.

She unraveled the bandage and exposed the gash that stretched across Ryder's back. "Lay down," she told Ryder. "I need to put some healing cream on it. This might hurt more than how Liz would do it, but she is out cold right now."

It didn't hurt as bad as Ryder thought it would have. Surprisingly, it felt really good. Even though she was a mechanic, her hands were really soft.

"You're not as bad as you think you are at this. It feels good," said Ryder.

"Don't get your hopes up," she said blushing. "This is a one-time thing."

A day passed, and Ryder felt better than ever. Katie's cream helped heal part of Ryder's wound. It's better than what it would have been. Ryder walked into the cockpit to check on Nero and Murdoch.

They were lounging back in their chairs slowly cruising towards a red planet. "Welcome to Korriban, boss," said Nero as he waved his arm to its view. "We scanned the planet, and there is a large encampment near the Valley of the Dark Lords."

"Well, Katie said that this thing can slipped by any radar sensors, so let's give it a shot." Ryder walked out of the cockpit and to the workshop where he found Katie.

"Katie, can you turn on all out cloaking devices, and prepare for landing."

Katie stood up and led Ryder to the Tech. Room. "So how many people do you think are at that camp?" She flipped a few switches.

"It's just a team that came down on two shuttles," explained Ryder. "Who knows, maybe you'll be able to show off your terrible power."

"Hey, you watch it. If I'm gone so is this ship. I'll quit. I swear I will." Katie flipped the last switch that turned on the cloaking devices, and Ryder went back to the cockpit.

"We're good to go in. Let's do it. Take us about half a mile away on top of the valley." Ryder motioned Murdoch out of his chair and swiveled to the intercom.

"Attention, crew. We are flying into Korriban, half a mile away from a valley. At the bottom is an enemy encampment. I need everyone to suit up and get ready." The intercom cut out, and Nero began his descent onto Korriban.

It took about thirty minutes for the entire descent of the ship. The ground of the planet was a rocky, desert planet that was full of mountains and valleys. The red sky cast a red hue over the sand and mountains. The ship landed on a flat area next to a ravine that stretched as far as the eyes could see. Everyone except for R2 gathered at the base of the ship. R2 was left behind to take care of the Rogue Shadow.

With everyone gathered around him, Ryder stood ready to give the talk. He was wearing a gray and black leather Jedi tunic with a dark black cloak and hood. The clip on the front of his cloak was a three-inch white strip of leathery fabric with a red outline. It clipped near the right pectoral muscle in the chest.

"Down on the side of this cliff in the ravine, a castle is carved into the side of the cliff. Deep within lies an ancient Sith academy where they trained students in the dark side. Given the information in one of our holocrons, Darth Bane's lightsaber and a unique holocron is in there. Also since there is an encampment there, I'm assuming we might run into trouble there. Let's stay close together until we run into trouble where we have to split up." Ryder stood up and walked to the edge. "Liz, how many do you sense?"

Liz walked up next to him. She held up a hand sign and scanned down beneath them. "There are four at the entrance, and a lot more inside the academy. No one is coming to the entrance. Now's our time to strike."

"Okay," said Ryder. "Luca, Murdoch, Liz, and Nero. Each of you take care of a single guard. We'll follow in after." He lifted the hood of his cloak over his head and signaled for others to draw their weapons.

The four he called out drew their weapons. Luca and Liz had a kunai in hand instead of a sword like Murdoch. Nero was the only one that was going without a weapon in hand. Luca, Murdoch, and Liz quietly leaped down from the ledge they were on and took out their own guard.

Using his dragon fruit ability, Nero slid down a single thread that landed him right next to his own guard. Before the guard noticed what was happening, a fine thread that was wrapped around his neck shone in the light. Nero had his fingers in the air ready to snap, so the guard stood completely still except for the few trembles of fear he was witnessing. Nero turned to face his captive.

"I'm not gonna say shit," the guard struggled to say as he spat in Nero's face.

Nero wiped the spit from his face. With a fed-up expression he slung his hand down and threw the spit off. "If it wasn't for what the boss said…" sneered Nero. "You'd be dead right now." Nero, firmly grasping the guard's shirt, kept staring into the guard's eyes.

A silhouette appeared from behind Nero that seemed to be getting closer and closer. The temperature of the air rapidly got cold and stayed at what seemed to be sub-zero temperatures. Nero let go of the guard's shirt, scoffed and walked away.

The hairs on the guard's arms had already been standing, but now they seemed to be frozen in the upright position. The guard looked up at the silhouette, but it had disappeared.

"What's happening," asked the guard to himself? He frantically looked to the left and then back to the right. He saw the ravine continuing on his left and right side, but there wasn't anyone around. Suddenly, an overwhelming pressure over came him, and the figure that was cloaked appeared in front of him with his hand out front. "How many people are in here, and what are y'all after," asked Ryder?

Overcome with the feeling of wanting to help someone, the guard said, "There are about twenty others here. Our objective is to retrieve the legendary weapon of the Dark Lord, Darth Bane, and a rare holocron."

"Good," said Ryder in reply. "Now, how are they stationed?"

The guard went on and on about the layout of all the guards and when a rotation change occurred. The next one happened to be in a few minutes. Ryder let go of the guard's mind making him fall to the ground unconscious.

"Okay team, it's time to recover the holocron," Ryder said as he led the team into the darkness that awaited them inside this stone castle. Behind him, everyone lined up with Nero at the back as the caboose.

After a few yards of squeezing past stone, a bright blue light shone in-front of them. "That's got to be the inside. Let's hurry up and see," said Ben who was close behind Ryder.

Ryder kept his gaze towards the light and said, "In any case, just be ready for what's inside."

After a few steps, Ryder emerged from the crack in the stone of the other side. Out came the others one after another, until all of them were in a large room in an ice castle. The ice was clear, but things the other side looked a little more blueish. There were columns in a row leading up to a throne made of ice. Upon the throne, sat a man that looked about twenty.

"So, we have company," said a voice that came from the throne. Within an instant, a blue fire that was held in the hand of the man on the throne lit the room up a little bit. A man in black pants and shoes with a white button down and rolled up sleeves sat up in his chair made of ice. A black tail with a blue flame at the end whipped out from behind the man and wiggled in-front of the man.

"I assume that we're looking for the same thing," said the man eyeing everyone that had just slipped through the crack in the wall.

Nero, with his arms crossed, turned his head towards the mysterious man and said, "Depends on what you're after."

The man stood up and looked at Nero. Blue horns came from his head and appeared on his arms and chest. He unsheathed his sword and engulfed his surroundings in an ocean of blue flames. When the flames died down, the area where Ryder's team was standing was protected by Ryder repelling the flames with the Force.

Ryder lowered his hand and took a few steps toward the man on the throne. "We come in search of a purple holocron," said Ryder. "Along with the weapon of the Dark Lord of the Sith."

Katie, who had been scanning the opponent's face in a databank, looked up from her transmitter. She leaned forward and said, "Ryder, I know who that is." Ryder's eyes widened as he turned to learn about the man on the throne.

"Ah," said the man with his pointer finger in the air. "But, do you know who your captain is?"

Ryder stopped in his tracks and turned towards the flamed man. "What are you babbling on about," spoke out Ryder?

The man gave a small laugh. "For instance, I am Tray Matthews. When I was just a little kid, my dad was murdered right in front of my face."

Tray jumped down from the throne and down to eye level with Ryder. Swirling around his sheathed sword, Tray said, "I know who you are! The dead that come from your hand tell me the stories!"

He unsheathed his sword and lunged at Ryder. Thinking quick, Ryder took out his lightsaber and blocked his attack. Tray immediately began slicing his sword with precision cuts anywhere that there might be even the tiniest opening.

Blue flames came from Tray's sword every time it connected with Ryder's lightsaber. Barely dodging the black tip of Tray's sword, Ryder jumped backwards and gathered the Force.

"Get back everyone," he struggled to say as he gathered the Force between his palms. The rest of the team hid behind a pillar on Ryder's back side.

Tray stood there with his sword in hand. The blue flames whipped off his body and sword. They seemed like dancing flower petals floating down from their bud. "Bring it on," he said.

Ryder looked up at Tray and said, "You asked for it." He directed the Force, that was in-between his palm, through his hands and redirected it towards Tray as lightning. It crackled as it ran across the air towards its target.

Ben was astonished with the amount of lightning that his master could produce. It looked like a storm. Suddenly, a column of blue fire shot straight up from where Tray stood, and lightning followed it up soon after.

The fire and debris cleared to show two people standing. Both Tray and Ryder. Tray walked out of the small crater that he had just made and said to Ryder, "Do they even know who you are, Ryder?"

Ben, Nero, and the others looked at each other with confused looks.

Liz looked at Murdoch and said, "What's he talking about?"

Murdoch continued staring at Tray and yelled out, "What the hell are you talking about?!"

Tray chuckled as he turned around and headed towards his throne. He arrived at its base and jumped up on top of the seat. Gazing at Tray on the throne, Ryder yelled at him, "Just tell us where the holocron is."

Clapping back, Tray said, "Ah, well I don't know where that is. I did know where this is." Tray bent around the back of the throne to grab something.

Meanwhile, Ben crept close to Ryder and said, "Can you beat him?"

Ryder started thinking. 'His sword is enchanted or is made of some special material making it lightsaber resistant. Blue flames also come out of the blade and himself regularly. So, this means that he deals mostly with fire. With his physical condition, speed, and confidence. I might not be able to take him down,' Ryder thought.

Tray turned to Ryder and his team and brought a mask out in front of him. It was a black mask with red shapes on it. There was a black slit where the eyes would be allowing the user to see properly. Tray put the mask on his face and said, "Come, retake your mask!"

"Ryder," said Ben. "Is that the mask that the mercenary, X, wore during his campaigns?"

Ryder stepped forward.

"Oh, no," exclaimed Tray to Ben! "This is the mask your master wore during HIS campaigns!"

Ryder jumped at Tray with his lightsaber ready for attack. Tray grinned as he readied his defense. Ryder sliced down and then back across trying to get Tray off balance.

Tray defended the strikes perfectly with help from the mask that boosted his power. Gathering power in the palm of his right hand, Tray launched a powerful fire wave towards Ryder.

Nero stepped forward. As a purple aura flowed from him, Nero flexed his eyes and swiped across his body. That swipe caused thousands of threads to cut through the fire, killing it.

"Just because our captain has stuttered in his step, doesn't mean that we have lost." The debris and dust settled. "I believe in Ryder, I'll put my life on the line," said Nero

Tray stumble backwards but caught himself with his back left. Angered, Tray lost track of Ryder. He lifted his wrist to his mouth and said, "Everyone. Get out of here, and don't give up anything!"

Tray began to power up as blue flames started to come from his body. Suddenly, Ryder appeared above Tray kicked him in the back of the head into the ground at the base of the stairs.

Ryder, now standing where the throne stood, looked down at Tray, who was all out of energy and was still wearing the mask. Ryder said to him, "You dare disrespect the heritage of that mask by putting it on?"

The flames coming off Tray's body began to flicker downwards. Tray looked up at Ryder. He could feel the incredible power that Ryder was exerting.

All out of energy, Tray struggled to let out, "Stop… I'll give you the mask."

Ryder did not ease up at all. "I can get the mask back either way," he said with a serious face.

"Boss, there are two more hostiles inbound," said Murdoch from the other side of Tray.

Without moving his glare off Tray, Ryder said, "You seven should be strong enough to defeat them." After he said that, Ryder used the Force to grab the mask, and he put it in a pocket on the inside of his cloak.

The seven looked at each other. Ben looked at Nero and said, "I don't know about this. Ryder seems different."

Nero's gaze shot directly at Ben. "Look, I know what Tray said might be confusing right now, but we need to focus on the two enemies coming. Once we kick their ass, I'm sure Ryder will answer any questions."

Nero turned to the back of this giant room. With a very confused look on his face, Ben grabbed Nero's arms and said, "Hold up now, Ner—"

Ben was cut off by a loud voice that suddenly yelled, "Iron Dragon's Roar!"

A tornado of iron scrap metal and raw power shot towards the group of eight as they all dodged the first attack.

Right after the roar, another voice yelled out, "Expelliarmus!" A green laser shot from the dark, but Ben deflected it with his new lightsaber.

"Who's there?! Come on out," yelled Ben!

A man with a white tank top and boots stepped out with a teenage boy with a wooden twig in his hand. The man wearing the tank top yelled, "I'll roar again if you don't leave at once!" He paused and nothing happened except for the wave of his long black hair.

"Fine," he said. He reached into his back pocket and pulled out a small lightsaber and ignited its piercing red blade.

"I'll just butcher you all with this…" The black hair made him seem a lot more menacing. "Here, I go then."

He dashed towards Nero, and slashed at his chest, kicking debris and dust up everywhere when the lightsaber made contact with the ground. Shockingly, when the dust settled, both fighters were still standing, but there wasn't anything in the attacker's hand!

Looking around frantically, the man with black hair began murmuring to himself.

"Are you looking for this," asked Ryder?

Ryder twirled the lightsaber around in his hand and held it towards Tray.

Nero closed in on the other male attacker that cast a spell.

"Now, boy," said Ryder to the young wizard. "Give us the other object that y'all have found or we will kill everyone here."

The teenage boy stepped back and held his wand in-front of him. "Never," he yelled out!

Ryder stepped away from Tray, who had been under Ryder's spiritual pressure for a while. Now, he picked up Tray using the force and held him forty feet up off the ground.

"Give it to us or he gets dropped." Ryder held his position while the young boy was visibly distraught from his decision.

"3… 2… 1… Goodbye," counted down Ryder. He let go of Tray, but right before he would become a smashed tomato, the boy yelled, "Stop!"

Ryder caught Tray a meter from the ground and rose him back up to forty feet in the air. "What was that I heard?"

Ryder walked down to the boy with his other hand held out in front of his face. "The holocron, James."

The magician's face widened more than gum under a press. 'How does he know my name,' thought James?

Slowly, James reached into his bag and pulled out purple holocron in the shape of a pyramid. He placed it right into Ryder's hands. "I give up," he finally said.

Ryder grabbed the holocron and put it in his own bag. "Thank you, James," said Ryder as he walked back to his group.

From behind him, a voice rose up and said, "What you hold is very special. Tell me what you will use it for." Tray slowly rose up from the ground in front of the stairs that led to his throne.

Without turning towards Tray, Ryder said, "This is for the rebels trying to get rid of ISIS. I know that this is a place deals out weapons to them."

Tray's left eyebrow raised as he said, "…and?"

Ryder turned his head, looked Tray in the eyes and said, "Help us. Keep tabs on the people that come here and give us any information on ISIS or anything they are connected to or suspicious. This will help us figure out what they're doing and where they are."

Tray looked at Ryder. He knew that Ryder was tremendously stronger than him. "We'll do it." He paused. "But, only if you train and help us when in need."

Ryder walked up to Tray. Looked him in the eyes and shook his hand. "I'm not a tutor. I have my own mission that needs taking care of. I hope I never see you on the opposite side of my blade," said Ryder to Tray as he walked back to the crack in the wall of the cave.

"It's time to head out of here. Let's go." Ryder threw up a wave then left through the crevice. On the other side, Ryder signaled for R2 to bring the ship around. No one really talked while they waited for the ship. Everyone was confused about Ryder and the mask.

'Are they the same people,' thought Ben?

Within minutes, the ship finally arrived and landed in front of them. The crew walked up the ramp and into the main hold right on board.

Ryder broke the silence and said, "I want everyone back in here once they have showered and changed clothes." Everyone nodded in agreement and went their separate ways except for one other crewmate.

Ryder waved him into the cockpit where he was already sitting. Ryder looked in the other's eyes. "How do you think that they'll take it, Nero?"

Nero calmly said, "They'll have questions. A lot of questions now that I think about it. As long as you keep be encouraging, then they'll go along with it."

Ryder relaxed in his chair and said, "Thank God. The last thing I need right now is to worry about this too."

Ten minutes passed and Ryder and Nero were in the main hold chatting with each other. Ben and Katie were the first ones to join into the room. Quickly following them was Liz, Murdoch, and Luca who had Weston on their tail. They all gathered around the table waiting to hear what Ryder had to say.

"I first want to begin with saying, I'm the same Ryder that fought in the novice tournament. I'm the same Ryder that hung out with y'all on the Slipknot," Ryder said glancing at Katie. "But, I haven't been one-hundred percent truthful with you guys."

Ryder looked around at the other seven. "Two and a half years ago, a man dressed in battle armor wearing the mask Tray was wearing stopped by my house on the night of my seventeenth birthday. It was the same day that school ended." Ryder looked at Luca and he knew that Luca knew the day he was speaking of.

"He demanded to see my dad, who was passed out on the couch at the time. I was shooting basketball, and he froze the ball and everything around us. I was shocked and kind of scared, so I let him inside. He was an old friend of my dad. He was a Jedi. I learned that my father was one too. I also learned that my whole family was in witness protection because my whole family was from THIS universe. When earth went through the wormhole, so did we, and we landed on earth. My mom and brother were split from me and my dad because my brother and I have unique abilities. I don't know what they are, but that's what was said. So, the man that wore that mask was named Korvin. He had come to tell my dad that people were on their way to kill him. They knew that day was going to come, so my father made Korvin promise that he would take me in and train me. So, he did that. I became a mercenary that learned under him. The lightsaber I have now," he said taking it from his belt. "Was the original one I created those years ago. The power you felt when you first saw me turn it on was a spell that took my memory being released. In the latter months of my training, we had found Nero and decided to pick him up as a training partner, rival, and friend. After that I joined the academy saying that I had been in the army. I haven't changed. I'm the same guy just with a weirder back story."

Murdoch rose his hand and without being called on said, "Don't get me wrong. I believe you. But, what changes about us… in beliefs, followings, and other things."

"That's a good question," said Ryder as he looked up at Murdoch. "Nothing. I have the same ideals as before. We will defeat ISIS not matter what. We still align with the United States, but just think of us as a crew that assigns their own missions too."

"Ahhh, I get it," said Murdoch as he sat back in his chair.

"What if we don't want to continue with you," said Weston?

"Then no hurt feelings," said Ryder. "The plan the whole time was for me to tell the President after this mission anyways. You'll be free to leave."

"Why was it necessary for you to take away your memories," asked Ben?

"Because I couldn't let the US know anything about me since I fought along side them in a fight. I wasn't accepted into the academy, then I wouldn't have been able to form a team, which was the primary objective to this my mission," explained Ryder.

"What's your mission now," asked Katie? "And what if I say that you can't take my ship?"

Ryder smiled. "The mission now is to learn the contents of this holocron. This was mission number two. And regarding the ship, I'm sorry, Katie, but I'll be taking it out of the US's hands."

Katie shrugged and said, "Well, I guess it could be worse."

"Any other questions," asked Ryder?

"How powerful are you really," asked Nero?

"You already know the answer, but to ease the others' minds. What I showed against Tray was just a warm up. Plus, there is a large gash on my back from when I fought the hollow on Ilum," Ryder said as he looked at Katie who just nodded.

"To put it simply, I'm the strongest soldier in the US army. I'd beat everyone including: Jackson, Ziggy, Rodan, General Hall, and anyone else. I know a lot more Force abilities than what you've seen me do, and I have a lot more battle experience than what you originally thought I had," finished Ryder.

"So, where to now," asked Liz?

Ryder looked at the group and said, "Back to the ship. Like I said, if you don't want to stay, you don't have to."

The crew scatter as they got into their flight position: Murdoch and Weston manned the guns, Ben was assisting Liz in the Med bay, Luca was in the tech room, Katie sat on the couch because nothing was broken, and Ryder was with Nero in the cockpit setting their location for the outer rims near, Gonus.

While Ryder and Nero were talking in the cockpit, Ben walked up in behind them.

"What is it," asked Ryder?

He stood there still until he said, "Does this mean that you are a Sith?"

Ryder immediately said in return, "No." He turned and faced Ben. "Close your eyes." Ben closed his eyes and waited for the next instruction. "Pretend that you are on a tight rope, and on your left, is a raging field of fire. On your right is a calm ocean, but you can feel the passion of the waves beneath the surface that are wanting to break free. Both sides are equally dangerous. I've been taught to walk the middle of that path. The tight rope. We can dip down on one side and use some of their abilities, but we never fully jump in on one side. What you saw against Tray was just that." Ryder grinned and turned back to the front. "I hope that helped out."

Ben stood motionless for a few seconds. Then it clicked in his head. "So, we're in the middle. Using both light and dark side powers…." He bolted off to the training room where the books from the vault were held.

"At least he doesn't seem to have a problem with it," Nero nudged Ryder.

The doors to the training rooms busted open to reveal that no one was in them. He looked around the multiple rooms and didn't see a sign that pointed to the books. He glanced to the left, and when he passed a door on the side, he saw a bright light leak from the bottom of the door. Ben ran over to the door and opened it. There had to be at least seven book shelves full of books that looked fresh off the press, and tattered books that look like they have been through multiple ages of wars.

Using the Force, Ben ran his hand across the book shelves waiting for a book to call out to him. A faint hum appeared in his head. Ben continued to run his hand over the vast amount of books. The hum got louder and louder until it seemed like his ears were about to pop. Ben forcefully opened his eyes and saw that his hand was over the spine of an old book. He pulled it out and looked at the cover.

It was made of a brown cloth that had faded to a near gray. The cover was plain and did not have any illustrations. The only thing on it was the title written in black. It said, "_Force Applications."_


	21. Chapter 20: Force Jinchuuriki

**Chapter 20: Force Jinchuuriki **

It took the crew of the Rogue Shadow three days to get back to the Slipknot that was in the outer rim near the planet, Gonus. Ryder had been communicating with the President on the main ship on their travels back. The President knew they had the holocron and told Ryder that he had permission to open it.

"Captain, we're an hour away from the Slipknot," said Nero, who was navigating the ship.

Ryder had been staring out into space for a while now. "Okay." He stood up and said, "I'm going to my room. Don't disturb me." Ryder left the cockpit and headed straight to his room.

For the past few days, Ryder had been hearing voices telling him to go ahead and open the holocron. To forget about the generals and learn about its secrets.

"Well, I did retrieve it myself," murmured Ryder to himself. Walked down the corridor where his room was. Ryder pressed the red button to the left of the door, and the it slid open. Ryder walked into his room feeling conflicted.

His room wasn't very big. Just enough space for a bed and a dresser. However, there was a secret passage way in Ryder's room. He had found it while meditating. Within the wall towards the front of the ship, Ryder felt a counter weight with the Force, so he lifted it. Consequently, a door slid open revealing a small hallway that led to another small room. This was where Ryder hid the new holocron.

He walked into the secret room and looked at a desk that was up against the wall. Opening the bottom drawer, Ryder reached in and grabbed the holocron. He sat down in the middle of this room and held it out in front of him.

"Open meeeeeee," it said.

Ryder studied the holocron. He didn't feel a dark intent coming from it either. "Screw it," Ryder said. He held onto the base of the holocron then proceeded to open it with the Force.

Purple light danced around the room like it was a disco party, but Ryder was being blinded by a bright light. There was a loud ring that could make anyone's ears bleed. Suddenly, the light faded, and a man wearing a suit appeared. He had on a black jacket, pants, and shoes with a white shirt and no tie.

He stood there and said, "I am Strike Len, seat Osiris in the Council of Anubis." He paused and studied Ryder. "I recognize your Force signature. You must be Revan, the Raven of the night. The Council requests an audience with you. We have a request for you." The hologram of the man stopped moving. "This is part of my Force speaking to you so yes, I am waiting for your answer," he continued.

Ryder didn't really know what to think of this council, but he said, "Yeah. Give me the coordinates and I'll think about it."

Striker ended the message with, "Open this back up when you leave for us, then go to the ancient Sith temple on Xena 4 in the Germain sector. I hope you'll be ready for the power that we'll can teach you." The message faded away.

'Damn, that was strange. I need to tell the crew about it before we land,' thought Ryder. He put the holocron back in the drawer and left his room. Walking to the main hold, he got ahold of the speaker system and told everyone to meet him at the table in the main hold.

Within minutes, everyone was sitting around the table. Ryder looked at everyone and began his speech. "I know that some of you probably think bad of me for tricking y'all, and that is completely justifiable. Now, when we get back to the Slipknot, we will have a one day break. That is when people can decide if they want to continue with this crew. With that being said, I opened the holocron. It was a real-time message from a guy named, Strike Len. He said that he was a part of a certain council. They had a requested an audience with me. He said that they had a favor to ask. The day after tomorrow, this ship will leave for their location. I don't know how long it will take or what will come after that, but we will not lose sight of the true goal: to defeat ISIS. All of you are welcome to come back and go on this mission with me and whoever else wants to join. Or, you can drop this crew and go find another one. One that won't be in many fights, get stronger together, and be in the face of danger a lot." Ryder paused and looked at everyone in the eyes.

"I will give you a day to rest and think about this. I don't want to know your answer until your bags are packed and you're ready to help get the ship to launch. Now, everyone. Go pack your luggage and get ready to land in about ten minutes." Ryder stopped talking and went to his room. He didn't pack a single bag because he knew that he would be right back on here soon enough. Ryder left his room and went to the main hold. By the time he got in there, the ship had already landed and the walkway was being extended down.

Ryder was the first one down while the rest of the crew followed behind with their luggage.

It was Tuesday at 7:43 pm as they got off the ship.

"We leave Thursday morning at 8:00 am. If you're coming don't be late." Ryder said goodbye to some of the crew then went back to his room on the ship. He didn't want to switch beds for two nights when he was already use to this one. It was peace and quiet until Katie walked in right as Ryder was falling asleep.

"You know, we're going have to do some work on this before we take off again. So, I don't know if this is the best place to sleep." She grinned. Noticing that Ryder was trying his hardest to fake being asleep, she said, "Alright. I guess we can do it all tomorrow." She turned around and walked out.

Before she could get out of the door to the room she heard a soft, "Thanks, Katie." She smiled and walked out of the ship and to a different ship

Thirty minutes had passed and Ben had already put his clothes back in his dorm room. He really wanted to continue learning the ways of the Force, but wasn't sure if it would be a good thing training under a mercenary. That would mean that all his teachings would be directed towards killing. He wanted to get stronger, but not as a ruthless killer. Ben finally decided that he had to go talk to Ryder. He needed to know what was going to be different in their training or relationship. Ben stood up and left the room and headed to the elevator. He got in and pressed "1" and the elevator began to go down.

On the elevator were two other guys around fourteen. They turned to Ben and said, "Hey, aren't you the Jedi that was chosen to go on that mission to get a lightsaber?"

Ben looked up at him and said, "Yeah, it was with seven other people. It was pretty cool."

The other teenager responded saying, "That's damn awesome. You should come train with us sometime. We're usually on floor four in the back." He reached out his hand to shake Ben's.

Ben grabbed it and said, "Thanks, man. I'm Ben, by the way."

The doors for floor "4" opened and the kids ran out. Ben remembered when he was that young; he missed it. The elevator stopped on the first floor, and Ryder walk out.

Ben could tell that the mechanic staff was undersized and needed more workers. There were running from one place to another to either help out someone or to fix something before it would blow up or break.

He walked to the Rogue Shadow and saw Katie with R2 near a bench. He walked up to Katie and asked, "Do you know where Ryder is?"

Katie looked at the ship and pointed to it. "He's in his room," she said.

Ben walked up the ramp and into the Rogue Shadow. It was pretty dark since the power was off. He went to the back to where Ryder's room was. He opened the door and saw Ryder laying on his bed.

Awake, Ryder rolled over to face the door and said, "Well, hello there," when he saw Ben. He sat up and said, "What's on your mind, Ben?" Ryder could tell that Ben had some thoughts racing through his mind since he was technically Ben's master.

Ben made eye contact with Ryder and said, "What going to change with my training. How will this affect me in the future."

Ryder chuckled.

"Ben, now that I have all my memories back, I will be able to train you and teach you things that you thought would never be possible to accomplish. You will be able to over-come any problem that you face. Just because I was a mercenary, it doesn't mean that I am going to train you to become a cold killer. I will teach you: abilities, strategies and tactics, and anything that will make sure you never get defeated."

Discharging a dense pressure, Ryder stood up.

"Ben, pledge your allegiance to me as my apprentice. Help me rid this galaxy of the scum, like ISIS, that do wrong. I promise to give you the power you search for. I will guide you, and I will protect you until you become strong enough to defeat even me. I will help form you into the greatest warrior that this world has seen." Ryder straightened up his back when he finished.

The thought of being the strongest allured Ben. He didn't want to become a cold killer, and becoming the strongest in the world did not conflict with being a cold killer. Ben released a deep breath and fell to a knee. "My Master," he said. "Teach me your ways."

Ryder calmed down and said, "Good. Now stand up and go finish packing. Be here at five in the morning for some training."

Ben immediately left and went to finish packing for the next trip. A ding rang from Ryder's phone alerting him of a message. He stood up and grabbed his phone to see a message from General Rodan.

Ryder opened it and it said, "Come to the briefing room as soon as you can. URGENT." Ryder stood up and threw his backpack over his shoulder. He left his room and the ship.

Leaving, Katie yelled out, "Hey! Where do you think you're going?!"

"Rodan needs me up there! I'll be right back," Ryder said waving bye. He was speed walking down the hall dressed in his dark Jedi robes and black cloak. He reached the elevator and R2 rolled up to his side.

"Hey, R2." The doors opened and no one was in there. "Thank goodness." Ryder pressed "74" and the doors shut sending the elevator to the very top. Within ten seconds, Ryder and R2 were at the top floor walking to the briefing table.

President Reed, General Hall, Rodan, Fox, and Stevens stood around a projecting table.

"Good," said President Rodan as he motioned Ryder to come join the discussion. Everyone nodded to say hello, and the President pointed to a dot on a projected space chart. "This is us," said the President. "We just intercepted an ISIS message saying that they are going to attack our position at noon tomorrow. You and Taylor are the only teams here that can be attack squads. Everyone else are just students or us teachers and generals. We are thinking of a strategy to get the books from a vault somewhere safe along with the other students. Maybe create a base on a planet."

The president looked around to room to other tired generals nodding their head in approval. "We are going to put two thirds of the books on our own ship to take to the land. Then with the last third, we are going to split that in half and give them to you and Taylor. Y'all are going to meet us at the location, and we will gather our strength together."

"So, are me and Taylor distractions for the main ship to leave," asked Ryder?

"Yes," said General Rodan. "However, I'm glad that it's you two. Because y'all can outmaneuver anything."

Ryder looked at all the generals and back to President Reed. "When do I start loading up the books," asked Ryder?

"That's was I like to hear," said General Hall. "You can go ahead and go to the vault. Jerry is up there right now. Just take good care of those books and if you go off and sell them, it won't end pretty for you," finished the General.

"I'll keep that in mind. We won't let y'all down," said Ryder as he walked to the elevator with R2. Before they reached the door, General Rodan said, "Congratulations on the lightsabers y'all acquired. I heard one's pretty special."

"They all are to be honest," said Ryder. "I also wanted to discuss the holocron with you, Mr. President."

"Ah yes. I had forgotten about that. What did it say," asked the President? The other generals leaned closer to Ryder as if it would help their hearing.

"A man in a suit appeared and told me that a council was seeking an audience with me. This wasn't like a normal holocron. When I didn't answer, the man replied saying that he needed an answer. It acted like a communication link between them and me. I told him that I would think about it. He said to open the holocron again in order to let them know when to expect me," finished Ryder.

"I see. I see. Do you think that it's a trap," asked the President?

"I do not. I think it is a genuine message," replied Ryder.

After a few minutes of thinking and whispering to the other generals, the President said to Ryder, "Since you have a lightsaber now, we give you permission to check out this request. However, you must keep in contact with us."

Ryder nodded and said, "Thank you, sirs." He stepped on the elevator and rode it up to the vault floor.

Ryder looked at his watch and it read, "11:52 pm." He sighed and went to his old room on floor twenty-eight. The hallways were barren. In each room, Ryder knew that all the students that were now soldier were sleeping.

Ryder looked over his shoulder. 'Something doesn't feel right,' he thought. He held his stomach from a nauseous feeling. However, he kept walking to his room.

Walking past the door, Ryder stared at what he left behind. It wasn't much. Just some extra clothes. Ryder looked down at his Jedi outfit. He wasn't really a big fan of it.

Looking in his old dresser, he found some other clothes. He took them out and laid them on his bed: a black, short-sleeve shirt that had a high collar with a zipper. A pair of black ninja pants that were close to the same length as Capri jeans. Last, ninja sandals that were paired with white bandages.

Ryder began removing his clothes. First the jedi robes and the leather fabric that went over his chest. Once the shirt came off, his bandaged wound from Ilum was made visible. The white wrap had a red line about a centimeter thick going across it. The wound was slowly healing, but Ryder's back had recovered quickly.

He put the black shirt on and unzipped the collar down to his chest. Ryder proceeded to put on his ninja pants and open toed sandals. When those two were on, he wrapped the top of his sandals up past the bottom of his pants. Ryder stood up and clipped his Jedi belt around his waist. He had his lightsaber on the right side and Darth Bane's on the left.

"It's time," Ryder said to himself.

He left his bedroom with his backpack and went to the elevator. No one was out in the hallways. It was '12:26 am'.

Ryder pressed the up bottom and the doors immediately opened. He pressed the 73 button and the elevator began to rise to the floor. The elevator stopped, and the doors slid open.

Ryder walked up to the archive doors, and they opened when his eye and hand was scanned. Taking one step into the archives room, Ryder noticed that the room had two colors fighting for dominance over the other. There was a shade of red and blue in the room.

Walking right, Ryder came in front of the two holocrons. He picked up the red holocron then said to it, "Am I ready now?"

He took the holocron and went into the meditation room.

Ryder unzipped his backpack and stuck his hand inside it, but he paused. Shaking his head, he pulled it back out and set the backpack against a wall. Ryder sat down and held the holocron out in front of him.

The Force was humming to him. It was a smooth melody that calmed him. Suddenly, the crescendo hit, and the pace, power, and depth of the hum increased tremendously.

Eyes closed. Only seeing and hearing through the Force, Ryder levitated the holocron and began to twist the corners of the pyramid to open it.

A bright red light flashed from the opening crevices of the holocron. A red hue casted its shade around the whole room.

"So, you've come back?" asked a blue figure being formed.

"Yes. I've gotten stronger like you suggested. Now, I want to learn from you," said Ryder.

The blue figure had taken form. It was wearing a robe and had wavy hair past his collar. The figure turned to Ryder and revealed a young face of Anakin Skywalker.

"I can tell. I know who's mask you have. I'm glad you didn't pull it out. I don't like masks," said Anakin's Force ghost. "The thing is this. I like you, Ryder. You tell everyone that you stand in the middle of the Force. In the gray. However, you teeter on the side of the Dark Side so often that the ones closest to you don't trust that you fight for good at all. I can also feel that your power isn't limited to the Force. It is you affinity, but there is more deep within you. You have accessed, you just didn't know it at the time. Yet."

Ryder looked into Anakin's eyes. "Teach me how to access that power, then."

Anakin's blue form slowly turned his back to Ryder. "Have you ever heard of Essence Transfer," he said.

"I have," replied Ryder quickly. "I only know about the very basics, though."

"So, in order to make a holocron, one must infuse enough Force into it. However, there have been people like Exar Kun and now me, that have transferred enough of their Force into them. Therefore, achieving this essence transfer." Anakin slowly turned to face Ryder.

Ryder listened intently. He knew if there were two people who were strong enough in the Force to do this, it was Exar Kun and the Chosen One, Anakin Skywalker.

"What I offer to you," said Anakin taking a pause. "Is my essence."

Ryder blinked at astonishment. 'I thought he was gonna tell me how to transfer my essence,' he thought.

"This does not mean that I will take over your body like a reincarnation. I will be stored within you. Supplying you with my own Force. You'd be able to use my abilities. My strength. My POWER," he said with emphasis. The presence in the room got heavy.

Dark.

Ominous.

"New powers that you never thought could exist will be accessible. Any enemy you wish to be defeated? Done."

Ryder thought on the proposal. The power and Force of THE Chosen One. 'This would be like being a Jinchuuriki, but with the Force and not chakra. I don't see a down side to be honest,' thought Ryder.

"What's in this deal for you. How do you profit?" asked Ryder.

"When I was in my prime, I was cut down and turned into a machine. A machine that was made with cheap material and that caused pain at every moment. The Emperor knew this. He designed it to be that way. As a form of punishment for my failure. This way," Anakin said with his eyes burning yellow and orange. "I can finally live the way I was supposed to. All my limbs intact. My connection with the Force fully intact. By being with you, I can experience what I could have and should have been."

Ryder began to feel bad for this Sith Lord. He had everything stripped from him. Yes, it was his fault, but nonetheless. 'This deal only benefits me, and since I'd be doing him a favor, he'd be more apt to lend me his strength,' he thought.

Ryder lifted his head and peered into Anakin's eyes. Full of pain. Full of sorrow. Full of power.

"I'll accept your proposition. I'll even let you take control over my own body so that you can experience life again, but only when I give consent. Since I am giving you this opportunity, you must teach me all you know," said Ryder confidently.

Anakin didn't say a word. He just smiled.

The red light began to fade away as the blue figure of Anakin began to fade as well. When all was gone, a blue orb the size of a dodgeball danced in front of Ryder. It looked like it was on fire with white and sky-blue flames flickering from the top. Looking deep inside the orb, Ryder could see orange and red swirling within.

Ryder took a deep breath then nodded at the orb. He opened his eyes, and the orbed flew into Ryder's chest leaving a small blue, with a red tint, cloud.

It felt as if a dam had been completely demolished because of an overwhelming pressure coming from a large quantity of water. Ryder could feel the blood in his veins rushing faster and faster. He could feel his joints becoming for flexible. His body shape didn't change, but Ryder could feel an incredible strength coming from his not so athletic build.

"_This is just a fraction of what I can offer you," said Anakin from within._

Ryder closed his eyes and looked deep within himself. He found himself standing in a large barren room. In the middle stood a young man with a very athletic build. His confidence could be felt from everywhere in the room. Anakin looked up at Ryder. His ocean blue eyes reverberating in the dark.

"_Let me know when you need me," he said closing his eyes and sitting Indian style._

Ryder opened his eyes. Since the contents of the holocron where gone, it turned into a pile of dust. 'Great,' thought Ryder. 'Now I have to tell the President what happened.'

"_Incoming," said the voice from deep within._

Red lights began to flash in the meditation room. Ryder picked up his backpack and ran out of the room. Red lights flashed in the Archive as well.

The intercom came on with a screech. "Warning. Incoming attack. T-minus 15 hours. Warning. Incoming attack. T-minus 15 hours." It continued and continued for about ten minutes. When the ten minutes of that message on loop ended, the President's voice came on the intercom. "Everyone. This is not a drill. We are expecting an attack in T-minus 15 hours. Everyone prepare your supplies and get ready for battle. We will try our best to avoid conflict, but there aren't any promises." The message ended, and everyone began running around frantically.

"Jerry has to be coming here right now," thought Ryder.

Suddenly, the Archive door opened and Jerry ran in. "At least someone with experience in this is here to help," he said with a nervous laugh.

"The President wants you to take at least two- hundred books," Jerry said to Ryder.

Ryder turned to Jerry in a nanosecond. "Did you just say two-hundred," Ryder asked?

"Yeah, you have the fasted..." Jerry stopped speaking to think. "Really the best ship we've got. Hurry up and pick them too. We're trying to make this go by as fast as possible," Jerry said.

Ryder began grabbing books and putting them in his own pile. He grabbed books that ranged from science to the ground. Atomic physics to fire. There were a good bit of science, other powers, and combat books in Ryder's pile. He turned to Jerry and said, "Okay, I'm done. You all can have the rest."

Jerry walked over and placed his hand on the books. Closing his eyes and focusing to the point where veins were popping out of his neck, Jerry teleported all the books Ryder picked out.

"Oh man, that gets better every time I see it happen," Ryder told Jerry. Ryder got up with his backpack around his shoulders and began to leave the vault. "I'll see you soon Jerry."

Jerry nodded then said, "Be careful. The President with send you the rendezvous point in the morning."

Ryder left the room and got back on the elevator. Ryder wondered if he would see Jerry again and remembered when he saved him when Khilor attacked.

"_Don't worry about the elevator stopping. I'll take care of that," said Anakin._

'That's more like it,' Ryder thought.

Ryder arrived on the Hanger floor and was happy to see all the books piled on a table next to the Rogue Shadow. "Why the hell did one-hundred books randomly appear here," asked Katie in a sassy tone. "They almost knocked me off my ladder while welding!"

"Sorry, Katie." Ryder apologized as he walked by her and to the books. "The President is making us take two-hundred books to the rendezvous spot on a nearby planet. He said he would transmit the coordinates in the morning."

"So, we're really going to get attacked tomorrow," asked Katie.

Ryder looked at her in the eyes and said, "Yes. But, they won't get us. I promise."

"Good. Well, I need to finish some welding. Have fun putting up books," said Katie as she climbed back on top of the ship.

Ryder waved bye as he picked up a few books. _Devil Slaying Magic _and _Fuinjutsu _were their titles. One after another, Ryder picked one up, looked at its contents, then placed the book on a shelf in the training room of the Rogue Shadow. By the time he finished, it was fifteen minutes after three in the morning. Ryder left the training room and went to his room. On the way there he saw Katie passed out on one of the couches with her welding tank nearby. Ryder smiled and kept going to his bed. His bed felt extra comfortable tonight. Maybe it was because he knew that tomorrow would only bring him a big headache.

Ryder woke up at seven in the morning. He walked out into the main hold to see R2 making some coffee. Ryder reached down and grabbed the coffee that R2 made and walked out into the hanger. Katie was on top of the ship doing repairs when she heard Ryder stumble out.

"How long have you been up there?" Ryder asked.

She smiled as another head appeared from behind her. Ryder slapped his forehead and said, "My bad, Ben. I completely forgot about this morning."

Ben stood up and said back, "No worries, Katie has been teaching me a lot about welding."

"Good." Ryder took a sip of his coffee. "So, everyone that's wanting to go should be here within an hour." He walked to the schematics of the ship and called General Rodan. "I'm waiting on my crew, then we will be ready, sir."

"Good. Let me know once everyone has arrived," responded General Rodan.

Ten minutes later the hanger doors opened and out came Nero and Murdoch.

"There was a zero percent chance that we'd miss this." Murdoch gave Ryder a high five when he passed the table he was at.

Next was Luca and Liz. They had their bags thrown over their shoulders and ready to climb aboard. "You'd be dead if it weren't for me," said Liz as she climbed aboard the ship.

Ryder turned to everyone and said, "Has anyone heard from Weston?"

No one said anything.

_He won't come. I can feel it._

Ryder shook his head at his new conscience. "Okay, we'll wait a little bit longer for him. However, I want everyone ready to go. We need to leave well before the attack." Ryder got out of the ship and got on his phone.

He called General Rodan and said, "We have everyone but one. I don't know if he is going to come. I gave him the option to stay here."

Rodan didn't say anything. "That's fine," he said. "There was an error in our calculations. Enemy ships are closer than expected. They're about fifteen minutes out. I need you to fend off any ship so that we can jump to mach speed."

Just as he finished, the intercom sounded. "Can I have everyone's attention. Two transport cruisers are fifteen minutes out. They are confirmed to be enemy transport ships. Everyone report to their battle station. Prepare the jump to mach speed." The intercom went out.

Past the barrier that divided the hanger from space, a small starship flew right past their view. The ship looped around and aimed straight for the shield barrier for the hanger.

It fired off a laser one at a time with no success and ended up crashing into the shield itself in hope of damaging it.

Ryder called Weston. "Weston, do you read me? Are you coming to the ship?" There was only dead silence. "I repeat, are you coming to the ship?" Ryder waited a few more moments.

"This is Weston," the phone said. "I've been blocked off to your hanger. There are too many people. I'm going with Taylor's group. Good luck and I hope to see y'all soon. I gotta go!" Just like that, Weston was gone.

Ryder walked into the ship and met Nero in the cockpit and the crew in the main hold. "We have to help the Slipknot jump into mach speed. Yes, that means we have to fuck up as many ISIS ships as possible."

Everyone looked around at first, but then agreed and hustled to their stations. Ben took Weston's spot as a gunman, so it was Murdoch and Ben there. Katie was in the engine room, and Luca was in the communication and cloaking room. That left Liz in the med bay sorting through the supplies.

"Let's go," yelled Ryder sitting in his pilot chair!

The Rogues Shadow lifted up and turned to space.

At that moment, the enemy transport ships appeared and released swarms of their own starships. With speed Ryder flew out of the hanger and zipped by missiles and lasers that were being shot near or at them. The elite starship destroyed enemy ships one after the other while barely dodging incoming shots.

The ISIS transport ship had locked it turrets on them, and they were trying to gun it down with all their might. In the process of being chased down and trying to get a good shot at the cruiser, the Rogue Shadow managed to find itself heading straight for the weapons system for one of the cruisers.

Ryder flew right past it, and yelled down the hall. "Murdoch! Ben! Get ready to shoot down this giant ball that we are about to pass!" Just then, Ryder pulled wheel and made the ship do a 180-degree turn. The Rogue Shadow was flying right above the cruiser towards the end was a large rectangular plate that covered the wires and everything for the weapons system.

"That's your target," yelled Ryder! They flew right on top of it, and as they were passing it, Ben and Murdoch were unloading all their ammunition into that spot. A few seconds after shooting at it, the weapons system controller blew up disabling their ship's guns. Seizing this opportunity, smaller ships jumped to the rendezvous spot where they were to meet the main ship.

_No shields? Looks like they're just making it easy for you._

Over the Rogue Shadow's intercom, someone said out, "I just sent out the coordinates for our rendezvous. Meet us there as soon as you can. When I jump to mach speed, this transmission will cut, so I'll see y'all later." The President pushed the throttle all the way down but nothing happened.

"Mr. President," yelled out Katie! "I think the mach-speed engine is broken! I see smoke coming from that area!" She looked over at Ryder.

"Damnit," yelled out the President. "It will take too long to get a team of engineers down there."

"Leave it to me," said Ryder into the microphone. "We're close to it, and I can fix it with Katie's instructions."

There was silence from the President's end.

"Mr. President," said Ryder.

"Fine, fine, fine," said President Reed. "But, I'm only doing this because you volunteered."

Ryder laughed a little and said, "Of course, sir."

He ran to his room and put his two lightsabers on his utility belt. Nero grabbed his arm on the way out. "You're forgetting something." Nero grabbed the mask off the captain's chair and gave it to Ryder. "Now, go get that mach-speed engine working." The Rogue Shadow flew into the hanger.

Ryder nodded and walked out on the ramp. Nero was hovering a few yards above the ground to make a fast get away.

Ryder, wearing his black short sleeve shirt and black ninja pants, stood at the end of the ramp. Slowly, he put on his old master's mask, and it seemed as if the sight bar glowed red for a split second. He jumped down on the barren hanger ground.

The rest of the crew turned towards Nero as if to ask if he was going to be alright. "Y'all are in for a treat," he told everyone as he flew out the hanger. Five minutes had passed until they got a message telling them to meet Ryder on the other side of the ship. Nero piloted the ship over to the other side and waited.

"Okay, Katie. I've made it to the mach-speed engine," Ryder said.

"Okay, check the connection on the side. A tick will be pointing to power if its connected," she responded.

Ryder searched the side of the broken mach-speed engine. He found the tick and saw that it was pointed to a circle with a line through it. "I'm guessing that the circle with a line through it is bad," asked Ryder from the inside?

Katie responded immediately and said, "Yes, and it also means that we only have to connect a few wires. Inside the top compartment are wires that should be shredded. You'll have to go up top and splice the wires yourself. Yellow with yellow. Blue with blue, and so on."

After a few seconds to process his job, Ryder got to work. Inside the top compartment, there were multiple wires that needed to be spliced. Ryder reached down and began twisting ends of wires together trying to avoid shocks of electricity.

A few moments went by, until they got a message saying to pick up Ryder in the hanger. Nero flew the ship into the hanger and lowered the ramp. It wasn't hard to find Ryder in the crowd down there. Ben pointed out Ryder from inside the cockpit. He pointed at a man in black clothes with a purple lightsaber deflecting lasers in all directions killing ISIS soldiers that had made it into the hanger.

When they got close, Ryder turned in their direction to where they got a full frontal of Ryder in his mask. It had an eerie feel and sent chills down many of their spines. Ryder jumped up onto the landing platform and entered the ship.

"Good job, boss," said Murdoch as he walked up and gave Ryder a high five. Everyone else was gathered around the table sitting there silent.

Ben broke the short silence by saying, "Well, I guess we're just gonna have to get use to the mask."

Ryder walked over behind Ben and put his hand on his shoulder. "This mask isn't something that you need to worry about. It's a symbol that shows ISIS, we are not afraid of them. We will fight them in the day or night. We can go to them or they can come to us. However, we will never run from our fight. Because our fight isn't for us. Our fight is for the ones who cannot fight themselves." No one said anything once Ryder finished speaking.

"Cheers to that," said Murdoch holding up a bottle of beer. He drank some of the beer then said, "I like the mask. Who knows. I might just make one for me too."

Ryder slapped Murdoch on the shoulder and said, "Now, that's the spirit!"

Immediately the hologram transmitter was going off. It was the President. Ryder walked over to the transmitter table and pressed the answer button. The President appeared as a hologram standing on air.

"I saw your performance in the hanger," said the President. "To think that the famous mercenary, X, was in my academy this whole time. I should've known that you were him. I assume that you are going to go sell the books I wanted you to transport."

"No, sir. I am going to bring them back after I have learned from every one of them," responded Ryder.

"So, you are going to learn those secrets and then help ISIS destroy us for the money. Like what a true mercenary would do?" The President sat down in his chair; slouching his shoulders.

"Quite the opposite, Sir. I still consider my team as valuable assets and partners to the US military. After all, we are all from there. However, there are things that I need to investigate and learn. If you want, you can call us your rogue squadron. We will share any new information we find. We are going to work from the shadows to take down ISIS and even bigger organizations. With that being said, I hope we stay in touch with each other," he finished.

"Wait. What do you mean by 'even bigger organizations,'" asked the President?

"It has to do with the purple holocron. Like I said, there is another group out there right now. I don't know if they'll help us, but I wouldn't count on it," explained Ryder.

"We are going to have to discuss this with the other Generals, so try to stay in touch especially since you are officially our first covert team," finished President Reed.

"I understand," said Ryder. "We might not talk for a while, but you'll receive updates." Ryder cut the line and left the conversation at that. He looked around the room and yelled out, "Alright! Now, time to go to the Germain sector."

"It turns out that the Mercenary, X, was among us this whole time," said a hologram that had two silhouettes standing next to it.

"Who is it," asked the first figure?!

"It was the Jedi, Ryder Jace," said the hologram.

"He was really good from the beginning," responded the second figure. "That explains how he progressed so quickly."

A door slid open and the lights turned on. "What are you guys doing in here with the lights off," asked Jake Anderson. He looked the same as he always did. Jake always wore black Adidas joggers, his white Nike Shox, and a white t-shirt that had a picture of the Ace of Spades.

"Jake is that you," asked the hologram?

"Oh, it's you Mr. President. Am I interrupting something?" Jake asked. By this time Zakee and Clayton had already taken off their cloaks.

"No. No," said the President. "Zakee will relay everything we talked about. I have to go now." President Reed pressed "End" and left Zakee and Clayton to the explaining.

Zakee put the hologram in his pocket and walked past Jake and into the main hold. "I need everyone in here." Zakee pointed at Jackson and said, "Put the ship on autopilot and come in here."

Jackson went into the cockpit and flipped the switch for autopilot then walked into the main hold. He had been working out non-stop in a simulated training room and it showed. He was more tone and had put on more muscle. It could even modify the gravity, amount of oxygen, and opponents inside the room.

Clayton was on Zakee's right and on his left was Jake. Clayton had put on a little bit of muscle, but his real muscle was his brain. He wore cut-off jeans, tennis shoes, and a Hawaiian short-sleeve button down. On Zakee's right stood Jake who was doing his usual, chewing Hubba Bubba Max Sour Double Berry gum. Sarah was the only one left, and she was sitting down at the table. She was wearing hiking boots, khaki shorts that went a little less than to her mid-thigh. Up top she wore a blue shirt cut off two inches above the belly button, gloves with cut off finger tips, a classic backpack for her Pokeballs, and her hair pulled up in a ponytail. She was the only thing that made living in this moving can enjoyable. Jackson walked over to an empty seat next to Sarah at the table.

"Leave your comments for the end," Ziggy said to everyone. "First off, the Slipknot and the Vindicator were attacked this morning. The Vindicator made it out fairly easily, but the Slipknot had some trouble. It took a while to get as many people into the ships built there. The archive books were split up into three groups. The Slipknot took two thirds of the books. Taylor's group took a sixth, and Ryder's group took a sixth."

Everyone was listening closely, waiting for the dreaded 'but'. "However, the mach-speed engine was down so, Ryder volunteered to fix it. He did a great job in fixing it especially under fire and pressure. But, it turns out that Ryder was wearing a familiar mask. The mask of a mercenary that fought with us a while back. It seems to be that Ryder is Mercenary X."

Eyes widen and wheels inside everyone's mind were turning at this point. Clayton stepped forward. "So, what's he going to do with all the books. Is he an enemy or an ally?"

"We aren't one-hundred percent sure," said Zakee. "He said that he wants to be an ally, but that he won't take direct commands from any US officer. 'We'll do the missions that y'all can't put in the newspaper.' Is what he said."

Jackson leaned forward onto the table. "At least we know he isn't 100% our enemy. Plus, if he's an ally, we'd still be able to share information we find."

Sarah butted in. "But, we don't know if he'll just sell off that information like he sold himself as a mercenary."

"I don't think Ryder will sell any of our information," Jake said. "I think that he has some things to straighten out before he can just set his eyes on ISIS."

"I hope you're right. Cause it would be awful to have to lose him as an asset," Ziggy said as he walked to the table and sat down. He pressed a few buttons on the rim of the table then a hologram of the Washington sector appeared.

Spinning the view so that he could find Nar Shadaar, Ziggy said, "Our next mission takes place on Nar Shadaar." He pointed to and zoomed in on the hologram of the mining planet. "It's a trade planet. Its prime benefactor is the ISIS Empire. Intel states that there is a large shipment of high-grade military weapons leaving on two loading shuttles." He clicked a button that brought up a hologram of two standard ST-321 shuttles.

"Two of us will pilot these pieces of junk out of there and to a secure location only known by us." Zakee stood up and turned off the hologram projector. "That's enough for now. I'll debrief the rest of the mission when we get there."

Ziggy walked out of the main hold of the Ebon Hawk and into his sleeping chamber. On top of his bed sat a book that he'd read ten times through already. "_Combining Energies with Magic,"_ said Ziggy to himself.

Ever since Ziggy had met people with Magic abilities, they fascinated him. Was there a reflect magic? Imagination magic? Elemental magic? The questions could be endless. Since, he could only use chakra, Ziggy was trying to find a way to use both. It would come in handy in countless situations, and with Jake around, they could practice all throughout the day.

Zakee held out his palm and a ball of water formed above it. He had gather water from the vapor and air in the room. He wanted to be able to manipulate the water without wasting his chakra. He turned it into a snake and then made it slither in the air.

Jackson walked in and saw what he was doing and asked, "Why am I walking in on you doing weird stuff today?"

Ziggy dispersed the water back into the air and said, "I was just thinking."

"Well, this mission won't take long for us, so do you have any ideas for after it," asked Jackson.

Ziggy continued to sit and said, "Nope. Really we just wait on instructions from the President and then complete the mission."

Jackson chuckled, "Don't tell me that you're getting jealous about Ryder."

"Not at all," replied Ziggy. "He's gonna get his crew killed within a few days. Guarenteed."

"We'll see about that," said Jackson as he turned to walk away. "He's got a good group, so we might just see them later." He left the room and went to see the others.

Ziggy was left alone in his room once again. He was thinking over what Jackson had said about Ryder's crew.

'He's got a good group, so we might just see them later.'

After saying that phrase, a thought hit him as hard as a brick wall. 'I just have to get a lot stronger so that my crew doesn't have to,' he thought. 'That's right. I just have to put handicaps on me to make me that much stronger. I guess I'll start at Nar Shadaar.'


	22. Chapter 21: City of Slaves

**Chapter 21: City of Slaves**

It took Ziggy and his crew three days to reach Nar Shaddaa in the Washington sector from Sligain in the Ragnos sector. On the way over, Ziggy trained the whole time with Jake. Jake was a good teacher. He taught the basics of magic and how to make spells with magic circles. The hand signs and how to perform magic circles were the easiest thing to accomplish for Ziggy since he used to do them for Jutsu.

Even though he couldn't get the hang of their magic, Zakee had excelled in expanding his own Jutsu inventory. Instead of only knowing water and wind Jutsu, Ziggy sparked a slight affinity for earth Jutsu as well. He only has the simple jutsu down like: Lightweight Rock Technique, Double Suicide Decapitation, Stone Spear, and Rock Thorn Launch. Since being able to use Earth style Jutsu, he had also been trying to perform Wood style Jutsu since it combined earth and water chakra.

Ziggy walked back into the main hold and met his whole crew there. "It's about time," said Clayton nudging Jake.

Sarah giggled to herself putting her hand over her mouth. "Okay, let's dive into it then."

Zakee sat down at the table and began the mission details. "First, we land on dock number, 89412 as ship, 'Rear Guard.' From there, we have a safe passage to the underworld of Nar Shaddaa where we should be able to move around freely. That's when we will split up. Our first objective is to find the whereabouts of a ninja named, Colby. He's a human. They said that he will find us. The secret greeting code question is, 'How's your day been?' The answer code is, 'Well, I'm young and ugly, so it can only go up.' He knows where they will be taking the military weapons and will show them to us. They are to help a mining company that gives Nar Shaddaa a lot of money. If he only shows them to one of us, we com the others then meet back at the ship to make a plan to get or destroy them. Preferably get. If one of us somehow gets captured, we stop the mission and save them. Any questions?"

Sarah's hand went up into the air and said, "Do we know what this 'Colby' guy looks like?"

"No," Ziggy responded. "All we know is that he is Devaronian, and he will find us."

Jackson raised his hand next. "What's up with the answer code?"

"He made it up," Zakee said a little agitated. "Look, all I know is that this guy is reliable and there is a small window for execution. So, we need to get a move on."

Sarah was the first to stand up as she muttered, "Mr. grumpy head." She left to collect her supplies for the mission.

"All my stuff is right here," said Jackson pointing to his muscles.

"He's got a point," said Jake as he felt his smaller biscepts.

"We're going in for the landing pad!" yelled Clayton from the cockpit.

"Landing clearance code 89412 for the ship: Rear Guard," he said into the communication transceiver.

A few seconds went by as no reply came out the speakers. Static came in that lead to, "Rear Guard, access granted. Please land and be safe. Thank you and please support Emperor Delshad for re-election."

Clayton looked over his shoulder at Ziggy and said, "Well, at least we're in."

Clayton landed the Ebon Hawk on a pad that was a little bit larger than the Hawk. The crew walked down the ramp and gathered at the bottom.

Zakee got in the middle, pulled his hood over his head and said, "Try not to let them know that we're here, so conceal your presence. Nar Shaddaa is split into three sectors. There are the Business, Resident, and Refugee sectors. Sarah and Jake take the Resident sector. Jackson take on the Refugee sector. That leaves the Business sector to me and Clayton. Remember, ask around using the greeting code and look for ways to bring down ISIS's influence here." Zakee looked at his fellow crew in the eyes and said, "Good luck and find Colby," he emphasized. "Now, scatter." Everyone went in their designated directions and left.

Clayton noticed how far he had come when they were training one day, and Ziggy randomly pulled him down into the ground as a prank. But, since that day, Clayton saw just how fast he was excelling too. One day he could barely hit a tree with a kunai, and now he's summoning them from his wrists and can bend them around sharp corners. He had the upmost respect for Ziggy. He would follow him into just about anything.

Jackson was flying through the air when he saw a large, enclosed area that had a lot of people dressed very poorly. 'That must be the Refugee sector,' thought Jackson.

He found an area that didn't have anyone in it, so no one could question him about flying. He began lowering down to the ground, but he didn't notice a little girl with an old teddy bear that was staring at him the whole time.

As he made his dissension, his hair was being pushed upward. His shirt expanded and waved as air filled and left it almost instantly. The cut off sweatpants that had an elastic band so they wrapped around his legs just beneath the knee stayed still and only made his Nike tennis shoes look that much cooler. "Wow," mumbled the little girl.

Jackson landed and swiped his hair to the side. He noticed the girl gazing at him while fixing his clothes which astounded him because he hadn't even sensed her. So, he thought he'd be nice and go talk to her. Jackson walked up to her, bent down and said with a big smile, "Hey there! Is this the Refugee sector?"

"I'm… I'm…" she stuttered. "I'm not supposed to talk to strangers."

"Well, my name is Jackson," he said reaching out his hand to shake hers. "What's yours?"

She blushed a little and held out her hand, "My name's, Octavia."

Jackson grabbed her small hand and responded, "How old are you?"

Octavia looked down at her fingers and began pushing on each one. She held up all fingers on one hand and then one other on her next hand. "I'm this many!"

"Well it's great meeting you, Octavia. Now, we aren't strangers," said Jackson with a big smile.

Before Jackson could ask his next question, Octavia blurted out her own first, "Are you my guardian angel?"

Jackson laughed and held out his hand with his palm faced up. He looked her in the eyes and then she diverted her attention back to his hand. Doing one of the simplest techniques he knew, Jackson gathered some of his own chi into a ball that was the same color as a clear blue ocean. Octavia's eye grew about triple the size due to the wonder and beauty of Jackson's chi. "Wow, Mr. Jackson," she began, but Jackson stopped her.

"You can just me, Jackson. Is that fine?" She nodded her head and smiled as he rubbed her head.

"Did you come to save me and mommy?" she asked.

Jackson's facial expression turned serious as he asked, "Why? What's wrong?"

"The ruler here won't let us leave," she whined.

"Don't worry, not for long," Jackson promised her. "Do you mind showing me around here?"

"Sure!" she said full of excitement. Octavia let the teddy bear loose from her chest and skipped in front of Jackson as he walked behind her. They past dozens of shipping containers that had been accommodated with bunk beds to make them seem livable. Mumbles of anger and misfortune could be heard all around them. Some of them gambled their lives away here, but others had a much more tragic backstory.

Octavia led Jackson to a ramp that split to the left and right. "This is the entrance to Heaven," she said pointing at the ramp.

"What do you mean?" Jackson asked.

"That's where you go when you do enough good things here," Octavia said. "Mommy says that we all will have to go there eventually. A group of kids that are even younger than me got really lucky earlier this week."

Jackson got serious, grabbed Octavia's shoulders and said, "What?!"

"Yeah. Mommy said that they were really good, so they got to go to Heaven extra early," Octavia finished.

Jackson left the rest to his thoughts. 'This girl doesn't even realize that she is in a slave trade business,' he thought. 'There's got to be some way to end this with or without the help of Colby.'

"Hey! Let go of my daughter!" yelled a woman running towards them. She dressed in tattered rags just like Octavia. This must be Octavia's mother, he thought. Jackson let go of her and stood up straight. The lady reached the two and immediately grabbed and hugged Octavia tightly.

"I'm sorry, Miss. I was just talking to her about this sector. I'm new here," said Jackson. He scratched the back of his head and smiled at the mother.

Octavia interrupted and announced, "Mommy! He's my guardian angel!"

Octavia's mother looked startled yet happy. She let out a soft laugh, put her hand up to one side of her face and said, "Dear me. I thought you were here to take my girl from me."

Jackson waved his hands out in front of him and replied, "No. No. I'm just trying to help out as many people that I can here."

Keeping her smile, she said to Jackson, "Well, if that's the case, will you come over for dinner?"

For the past hour, Jackson's stomach had been rumbling non-stop. If he saw something stacked, he thought of a burger. If saw something long and thin, he thought of spaghetti. "You know, I'd love that," he finally responded.

Sarah and Jake finally stopped running when they found themselves under a sign that read, "Welcome to the Resident sector!" This sector was nothing but shops, bars, and casinos lining the perimeter of a square walkway that lined a square abyss. Jake and Sarah walked up next to it and peered down to see what was at the bottom.

"They say that you'll land on the core of this planet if you jump down, missy," giggled a stranger that passed by.

"I can't imagine it leading to anything fun or exciting," said Sarah as she backed away.

Next to them was a strange alien that had an old model astromech droid next to him at what seemed to be a parts store. 'I wonder if he has anything of use there,' she thought.

"Maybe we should try out that store," Sarah said pointing to the alien and his astromech droid.

Jake was looking at the other corner and said, "I don't know. That side seems like it holds a lot more answers."

Sarah already had Jake's arm in hand, and she was leading them to the parts dealer.

They got to the front table and she asked, "So, how's your day been," while browsing some parts.

The salesman snapped back and said, "Hey now! No touching unless you buy!"

Sarah quickly snatched her arm back before it was forcefully taken from her.

She picked up that this alien wasn't Colby, but she wanted to see if they could get information from him.

'This is perfect,' she thought.

Sarah ran her finger across a pile of lens, adapters, spliced IDs, and spikes. The alien was quick to respond, "Hey, what'd I say!"

Sarah quickly straightened her leg and placed her heel on the table exposing her leg from the end of her shirt khakis to her boots. She walked her fingers down her leg while she asked in her soft and sweetest voice, "Do you know where a girl like me can go and make a lot of money?" As she said money, she slid her finger from her ankle, up her leg, and ended with twirling a little piece of her hair that usually hung down right in front of her ear.

The alien, who's eyes were wide open and gazing at Sarah's leg, lifted his right arm and pointed at the corner that intrigued Jake earlier. "That's the place you're looking for, sweetheart. Hopefully, I see you there," finished the alien salesman. He reached down to caress her leg, but she slapped him instead.

She had used that move so many times to get some information that she knew to touch the leg was most likely the response, so she always had that slap loaded.

Sarah turned and walked away with Jake close on her heel. She whispered behind him and asked, "Did you get them all?"

"Sure did," said Jake shoving multiple spliced IDs and spikes farther into his pack.

She saw how hard he was shoving and quickly said, "They're fragile. Make sure you don't break any."

"I got it, Mom," Jake said back sarcastically. He finished and slung the pack back on his back and caught up next to Sarah. They rounded the corner that takes them straight to the busy corner. "The Devil's Corner," read Sarah. "I wonder what it is?"

The entrance to the corner had a red carpet with red ropes guiding in whoever wanted to try out the corner. The name flash bright yellow and blue right above the inviting carpet. Jake looked at Sarah and said, "Can I escort my fine lady to the best corner." He paused for suspense. "That is… The Devil's Corner."

Sarah took Jakes arm around her own and followed him through the walkway. They were immediately met with a decision to go to the right or left room. The left had a bouncer out front checking names, so that narrowed down the two choices to basically one.

Jake led Sarah to the right room. It had two swinging doors at the entrance with the name, "The Devil's Horns" flashing up above. They walked into the room and quickly realized that it was a bar.

One side of the room had a bar that sold liquor, beer, and anything that would make you feel something other than normal.

A man in a black trench coat walked by everyone whispering, "Death sticks. I've got the death sticks," so that the law enforcement couldn't hear him. Everyone seemed so strange here. Species were dancing in the wildest ways, either a liquid or ooze was all over the floor, and the lights were flashing in a sequence that should've given everyone epileptic seizures.

The first place the two looked around was at the tables that lined the window to the outside. They walked slowly trying to notice or pick up on any subtle actions that would indicate that they are high up officials. The tables were gambling tables that had five to six people betting on cards with a robot dealer.

Jake nudged Sarah and asked, "Have you ever seen that guy on the other side of the room?" He nodded towards a blue man wearing long pants, boots, a white button shirt, brown leather vest, and a holster with a gun.

"Never in my life," she responded.

"Well, he's been eyeing us since we walked in," pointed out Jake. "Should we just go talk to him?"

"Seems like our only choice," she said moving past Jake and to the unknown man.

Reaching his table, Sarah put her hands on it and said, "Is there something that we can do for ya?"

A few of the others surrounding the table took a step towards Jake and Sarah with their hand on their holster. The man at the table held up his hand to hold them off. He laughed a little, leaned forward and said, "Now, is that any way to talk to the man that just saved your life?"

"Like hell you did. I could've stopped these chumps with my right hand and leg tied behind my back," Sarah said tossing her head from side to side.

The stranger's face went from annoyed to a smile when a few seconds passed. "You know what," he asked? "I like you. You've got some spunk to you. Why don't you sit down?" He nudged a grunt from the chair next to him and welcomed Sarah to sit down.

"No, thanks," she simply responded.

He sucked on his front teeth and let go making a loud noise. "I saw y'all snooping around here. What're y'all looking for? I'm not going to have my man put his gun on you, but you should probably answer this time."

Jake stepped up to the table. "We were just looking for good time," he said grabbing Sarah's arm then leaning in whispering something to her.

"I'm assuming that this is your sister because there is no way that you'd be able to score her, but I might be able to get her into somewhere a lot more interesting. However, it'd be without you short stuff," the man finished looking at Jake.

"What is it? Where is it?" Jake asked.

Leaning back and putting his arm around a girl Twi'lek on his right, he said, "I can take you to The Devil's Heart right next door. But," he said with his finger up. "You have to dance for the gentlemen there."

Sarah took a step back and whispered to Jake, who gave a quick response when she finished. She reached out her hand with a smirk and said, "I accept your proposition."

"Good," he said. "I'm Kryp by the way." He gave a small wave with his fingers. "This gentleman will take you to your room that you will get prepared in." A man around 6'3" and red hair took Sarah by the arm and led her to a room in the back.

Jake was still looking in Sarah's direction when Kryp said, "Bummer that she won't do that to you isn't it?"

Jake laughed, took a cup from the table, drank it dry then said, "I just hope your boys are ready." He left the table and headed for the bar.

Within a ten minutes Sarah was being led back to the table by the same red-haired man. She was getting multiple whistles and hollers on her way back and ended up seeing Jake by the bar talking to the bartender.

"Are you ready, sweetheart?" Kryp asked.

"Yep!" she said excited.

"Then allow me," he said. Kryp stood up, exited the table, and grabbed Sarah's arm ready to escort her to the Devil's Heart. She grabbed it and began the walk there. On the way out they passed the bar where Jake was talking.

"Good luck, my friend!" yelled Kryp to Jake. In response, he lifted his cup up as if he was giving Kryp and Sarah a toast.

They left the bar a headed down the hall to the next room. Kryp but his free hand on Sarah's arm and said, "Now, you two are either very desperate for money or on a mission for something." Kryp paused for a few seconds to reiterate what he said. Then, he broke out laughing right as they walked up to the door. He stopped laughing and stopped walking right when they got to the door.

He turned to look at her in the eyes and said, "If you decide to fuck me over in there. I will kill your boyfriend and any other of your friends that you have here, in front of you. Then, I will feed you and your friends to my pet ranchar." His eyes were serious and attracted Sarah with the bottomlessness of them.

"Got it," she said with a crack in her voice.

The doors immediately swung open to six chairs circled around a single golden pole. "Ahhhh, Kryp. You finally lured a fine dancer to us. Come, sit down," said a man with an elegant accent and a white fedora. Kryp walked Sarah up to the pole and instructed her to start dancing.

Sarah, wearing a fluffy robe, grabbed the pole and locked her legs poking out her butt. The men around her began conversing as if she wasn't there. This is perfect, she thought. She began swinging around and sliding up and down the pole while listening in on the others.

"Doctor. This meat medley is to die for! How did you make it?" asked a strange man that was no taller than four feet, but had many medals on his shirt.

"Very carefully. Only choosing the finest of the stock. The number of them have been decreasing, so that the food storage can increase," said a man that was wearing a white and black suit with a Mining Company tie pin on.

"Is there a way to get more food into here," asked one that was sitting next to Kryp.

"Now, now miss," said the man in the fedora. Sarah stopped dancing. "What's your name?" he asked.

Sarah stood up next to the pole and said, "Liz Deursmith." That was the best name that she could come up with on the fly.

"Lovely," he replied. "German, I suppose. Fascinating place." He sat up then leaned towards her. "They practiced perfection in whatever they did. If they laid bricks for road, they were perfect. If they built a cathedral, it was perfect in structure and beauty. The angles and symmetry complimented the colors and the art while pointing towards the Heavens. If they did art, it was perfect in every aspect." The man folded his hands in front of his face. "With you, I'm guessing full German with that last name. You should practice what your ancestors taught everyone. Perfection," he finished kissing the tip of all his fingers then bursting his hand outwards like Italian cooks.

"Yes, sir," Sarah said. She got closer to the pole and worked her hands down to her waist. She untied the knot that kept her robe on, then let it slowly fall to ground. As it wrapped and fell off every curve, the gentlemen in the room all set down their drinks and watched her.

"Yes, good. That is more like it," said the man in the fedora.

Her legs glistened as they wrapped around the golden pole. The purple background complimented her body emphasizing her tone and curves. All the gentlemen were now leaning forward in their seats paying attention to the masterpiece in front of them. With her butt to the men, Sarah leaned towards the pole and locked her legs. She looked over her shoulder at the man in the suit, then dropped her hips and let them fall to the floor.

After seeing that move, the man in the suit said, "Come on over here to Mr. Hunt." He gestured towards a different man in one of the seats

"Whatever you say," Sarah replied as she lightly bit the tip of her index finger. She climbed down off the short stage that the pole was on with the help of the Doctor.

Mr. Hunt was sitting comfortably in his padded, leather chair with one-thousand dollars in his hand. Sarah walked to Mr. Hunt and faced him face to face.

"Now, Mr. Hunt," said Sarah as she pushed her elbows together and leaned in closer to his face. "I hate to tell you, but that's just my lap dance fee." She shimmied, then stood back up straight. She turned around and began twerking on Mr. Hunts lap.

"Mr. Hunt, today must surely be your lucky day," Kryp pointed out.

Sarah ran her hands up her thighs and butt, up her waist, and through her hair at the top. Then, she brought her hands by down the front by moving them over her busty breasts and flat stomach. Whipping her hair around, she performed a seductive dance for another few minutes by bouncing her ass and full breasts in front of Mr. Hunt's face. She finished her dance and climbed up to the pole with the help from Mr. Kryp. He kissed her hand as she reached the pole.

The doctor spoke out and said, "Mr. Hunt. Doesn't this fine lady deserve the money you hold in your hand?"

"Without a doubt," replied Mr. Hunt placing the stack of money at Sarah's feet who was still dancing on the pole. All the men sat back in their chairs smoking their cigars when a waiter walked in, gave Sarah a nod, then whispered in the doctor's ear.

"Ah, who's the guest," he asked?

The waiter slid a piece of paper to the Doctor. Sarah was swinging around the pole trying to get a look at the name on the paper, but after a few twirls and getting dizzy all she could read was, 'Gamb.'

"Thank you, waiter," responded the doctor. "Oh, and let me have a look your selection of the young meat. I heard it tastes best."

The waiter bowed his head and exited the room in the same fashion.

"What a good waiter," acknowledged the doctor. "Now, Ms. Sarah. Will you excuse us. We are having an old friend over for dinner."

"Of course," Sarah said. She picked up her robe and tied it around her waist. She looked over her shoulder for as many details that she could pick up to tell the others, but she only saw one thing. In the back behind a black curtain, she saw a little girl standing next to the same waiter that had just walked out into the lounge room. Next her was a Twi'lek that was a few years older that had tears running down her face. Right when she saw the kids, the bouncer grabbed her arm and led her out of the Devil's Heart.

"I'm sorry Miss," he said. "But, what goes on next isn't fit for a lady's eyes or ears." Shock took over Sarah's face as she wanted back in to help the people in the back. A single tear ran down her face, and she wiped it away.

Sarah walked back into the Devil's Horns and saw Jake sitting down at a table with two girls and another guy. She went straight to her changing room and shut the door behind herself. She took off her robe revealing her stellar body. Reaching down between her busty tits, she pulled out a white and clear plastic card and put it in her backpack. Exchanging the bra and panties that she received with her own, Sarah put all of her normal clothes back on and left her hair up in a ponytail leaving that one strain of hair in front of her ear free.

Jake was conversing with people at the table about everything that has to do with Nar Shaddaa. He had learned about the multiple bars that have strippers, bars without strippers, casinos, business suites, and even a little about the Refugee sector.

"Well my new friends, my old friend over there is leaving the bar, so this is my queue to head out. Thank y'all," Jake said his farewell and hustled to get next to Sarah.

She was walking out faster than normal. Her strides were longer and stronger. They exited the Devil's Horns and left the Devil's Corner. They made some space between them and the corner before they started talking.

"So, did you get anything," asked Jake.

Sarah reached inside her backpack and pulled out a plastic card that read, "Shelvin Hunt" at the top. "I think it's a card key for a lot of doors here."

Jake grabbed it and looked at it closer. "I'm not gonna ask what you had to do to get this, but good job, Sarah. You outdid yourself this time." He gave her a high five then put the card back in her pack.

Zakee had been wondering the Business sector for all day now. He and Clayton split up at the beginning to search the Business sector more easily. It seemed like Colby wasn't anywhere there because no one knew the answer code.

He walked into the business suite and asked for the bosses or managers, but no one was there. On his way out, a group of four ambassadors that bore the ISIS flag walked into the same suite and asked for, "Mr. Hunt."

'So, Mr. Hunt is who to look for,' he thought. Zakee crouched and snuck out of there before anyone noticed him.

It was busy on the walk-ways at this time. People just got off their jobs, and they were on their way to shop or go home. Out in the middle of the square abyss stood three communication poles that towered over the entire city station. There was a man with an orange jacket and black pants working on the nearest one. Cleaning a nearby window, stood a women wearing a neon stripped safety vest cleaning a business's front window.

'I better go see how everyone else's day went,' Ziggy thought. He walked through the crowd and headed to the ship docks between the Business and Residential sector when he saw a familiar face in the crowd, Clayton.

"Did you find anything," yelled Zakee!

Clayton reached Zakee and said, "No, I didn't find a single thing."

The two started walking towards the ship docks and Ziggy said, "I did see four ISIS ambassadors asking around for Mr. Hunt." The two vanished in the crowd.

Jackson was standing outside of Octavia's storage home thinking about the dinner he just had while Octavia was running around outside with her teddy bear. Her mom, Tera, had three weeks to get three months of pay for rent. Mr. Hunt, the President of Nar Shaddaa, charged a large first rent to make sure that the new renter is capable enough to pay him back.

Tera and Octavia were slaves on Dantooine that were given a chance to be smuggled off Dantooine, so they took the chance. While making a stop at Nar Shaddaa, police found crates of smuggled aether on the ship, which would've been worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to the right bidder. They were thrown into the Refugee sector and forced to rent out a bunkbed in a storage home.

Tera had pulled Jackson over to the side and told him that the President kidnaps adults and little kids. It had been adults for slavery, but for the past week it has been little kids. She had been told that the adults that were taken will never come back, and she assumed the same thing with would happen to the kids. Jackson told her about Zakee, Jake, Sarah, and Clayton and how they were looking for a man named, Colby.

They had never heard of him before then.

Down the way, Jackson heard loud voices saying that officers are in town. He said a quick goodbye and left to check out the commotion. In the middle of the sector was a large pathway that started at the entrance to the Residential sector and lead to a base at the outer edge of the station and the sector. Two officers were making their rounds up and down the path checking storage homes for the young children. The officers had been taking a child with the best qualities until they found one with better qualities. A young boy with dark eyes and bags beneath them was put in-between the two. He was the chosen one at the moment.

Suddenly, Jackson was grabbed by the collar and thrown on his back in a storage home. Someone jumped on top of him and covered his mount and repeatedly said, "Shhhhh," telling him to be quiet.

The figure slowly got off Jackson and turned on the light. Jackson was surprised to see the only male six-foot, rookie recruit from the academy that had pink hair was standing in front of him. "Danny Granger? Is that you?" asked Jackson.

"You have to be quiet," responded Danny. He was wearing orange pants and a tattered plain-white tee. He looked just like one of the other refugees.

"Fine. Fine." Jackson took a look around the storage home and saw nothing out of the ordinary. "What are you doing here?" he asked in a lower voice.

"I was captured by ISIS when the ships got attacked, then I was left on Nar Shaddaa by a refugee frigate of theirs," explained Danny in a whisper. "If the officer out there recognizes that you aren't a refugee then you're completely screwed."

"Well, thanks then," Jackson said. "Do you hear them?" he asked.

"Let's see," Danny responded. He walked up to the door and knocked on it three times. A few seconds later, they heard knocks in return.

*knock *knock *knock.

After hearing those three knocks, Danny opened the door to two other guys standing at the entrance. "These are some people that don't like the President either. We created a code system to let us know if guards are close." He knocked on the door another three times.

"Impressive," Jackson said. "I like what you've done to some of these guys. We'd love to have you on the crew. We've got space."

Danny stood still and was on the edge of crying. He hit Jackson on the shoulder and said, "That means a lot, man. I'd love to."

Jackson grinned and said, "No problem. Having someone that heighten all their senses will be really helpful." He moved past Danny and said, "Thanks again for what you did. I'll come and find you once I go talk to this family."

"No problem," Danny said. "I'll make sure I have everything together and will wait on you."

Jackson left Danny's storage home and headed for Octavia's. Passing the main circle at the center of the sector, he noticed a women sitting on the ground weeping.

He walked up to her and noticed that it was Tera crouched over crying. Her hair was messed up, her cloak was dusty and torn, and she was holding a ragged teddy bear close to her heart. She looked up and saw Jackson.

"This is your fault!" she yelled wiping tears from her face. "She would have never volunteered herself for another child until she met you!" She paused and took a deep breath. "You could have stopped them, and now I'll never see her again." Tera began crying again in her hands and into the teddy bear.

Jackson walked up slowly. He wrapped his arms around Tera and slowly pulled her close to his chest. "It's okay, Tera. I swear I will get Octavia back. I swear it." Jackson was hugging her tightly as she was sobbing into his shoulder.

How could he let an innocent girl be taken while he was concerned with his own safety. Before they leave, he will get Octavia back to her mother. Jackson slowly let go of Tera. She had calmed down a little bit but still had a few tears rolling down her cheeks. "I have to go so that I can save, Octavia," Jackson whispered into her ear. She slowly let go of him, stood up, and walked home.

It was time to get Octavia back.


	23. Chapter 22: The Guardian Angel

**Chapter 22: The Guardian Angel**

Jackson raced back to the small area where he first met Octavia. Taking flight, he flew straight to where the ship docked.

'The others had to be there by then. The day was almost over,' he thought. He landed just as Clayton, Zakee, Jake, and Sarah ran up. For some reason, Sarah looked a lot better today in her crop top and shorts.

"Damn is it good to see you four right now," Jackson said walking up too them all. Zakee dapped up Jackson and Sarah gave him a hug.

"How was the Refugee sector," she said backing up. "Did you find anything?"

Jackson looked down at the ground and said, "I met a young girl named, Octavia, and one of the officers took her to the top place; where others have gone and never return."

Sarah jumped in and said, "While I was gathering info, I saw two little girls behind a curtain in the back crying. A doctor said that 'the younger one's are better…' in terms of taste." She paused for a few seconds. "We have to save her." Jackson and her eyes were staring at Ziggy.

"You're right. No one gets left behind." Ziggy turned to the group.

"Saving Octavia is our primary mission now," declared Ziggy. As he finished the sentence, the man wearing an orange jacket from the communication's tower leaped down and stood in front of the crew.

"Who are you?" asked Ziggy with a kunai pointed towards the man in orange.

"Hold on," the mystery man said. "I'm a friend. My name is Colby." He put his hands in the air to surrender. "I want to help out in your plan. The top officials here are corrupt and need to be stopped."

"How can you help us?" asked Ziggy still pointing his kunai at him.

"I can help start the uprising in the sectors. We can give you some cover," Colby suggested.

Clayton looked at Ziggy and said, "That is a pretty good idea. That way we can infiltrate the Devil's Heart easily and free everyone in there, too."

"I like the plan. Once we get inside the Devil's Heart. We'll need to go in search for the leaders and the other imprisoned. Colby, do you have any powers?" Zakee put the kunai back in his bag.

"Yes, I can use the Force and I am a ninja. Wind, lightning, and swift release," said Colby.

Zakee looked surprised. "Alright then. That makes things a little easier."

Everyone, including Colby, nodded and awaited orders. "Colby, head for the Refugee sector to get them rowdy. We need the guard to think that y'all are going to storm up to the office at the top. When we signal to you for your big part, you can take it away from there. Try not to elect pervs and criminals. Now go on ahead."

"I'll keep that in mind," responded Colby. He ran towards the exit of the docks and to the Refugee sector.

Ziggy looked at everyone and said, "Now, it's our time. Two of us will infiltrate the top while the other two will search for Octavia and the others."

Jackson butted in and said, "Honestly, for this type of rescue mission, since I'm the fastest, should I just search the bottom and get her out of there."

"I agree with him," announced Sarah.

Ziggy looked at Clayton. "What about, you?"

"I like it, too," Clayton agreed. "The only thing is: if you run into more than two other victims, then you have to link in with us and let us know, so we can help."

"Okay, I will," Jackson said. "So, this is how were gonna do it."

He pulled out a birds-eye view picture of the three sectors. In between the Refuge and Residential sector was an office. The same office was at the top of the Refuge sector that controlled the troops and anything that dealt with the refugees. He pointed to that office and said, "This is our target. The girls are hidden somewhere in there, or a place that is connected to it."

Jackson gave two thumbs up and said, "Good luck, you guys. I'll call you in if I need you." He flew off to the spot in the Refugee center where he met Octavia the first time.

Ziggy, Jake, Sarah, and Clayton ran from the ship and towards the Devil's Corner.

Jackson landed and reached his position, then he called out to the others and let them know. They all responded with green lights, so the mission was officially a go.

Down in the Refugee sector, Colby was giving soap-box speeches at every corner drawing the attention of the oppressed refugees and angered Nar Shaddaa soldiers. Soon enough, Colby had the entire sector united against Mr. Hunt and his sadistic colleagues. Mobs formed with their main weapons being torches and a few blasters. Besides that, they fought with their hands.

Jackson heard a loud chant that sounded like they said, "Hunt down, Hunt!" The crowd said repeatedly, drawing out more and more guards from the office.

'Now's my time,' he thought.

Jackson crouched and made his way to the near wall of the office. It was three stories tall, but very long and wide. He turned and faced the wall and jumped! He landed on top of the room with ease. Jackson walked to the center of the room and knelt on one knee. He closed his eyes.

Jackson focused. A few seconds passed until he opened his eyes.

Jackson grabbed the radio and said, "There's a group of people with low power levels down beneath me. There is one power level that is a lot higher than the others, but the rest are zero with a few exceptions. They must be the kids."

"How many guards?" asked Clayton.

Jackson focused his mind towards the other floors and their surroundings. "Since a lot have gone into the Refugee sector, there are a total of twenty-two power levels, so there are twenty-two targets that need eliminated."

The rest of the crew got ready for the fight. "Okay, go ahead and head down to your spot. Call us when you're ready," said Ziggy.

Jackson stood up and walked to the back of the roof, then flew off into the air. He saw the open area where he met Octavia and aimed for that spot.

Landing as quiet as possible, Jackson walked to the edge of the sector.

There was a control room across the sector that had a door that led to an underground passageway. That route led to the basement of the main office that was on the ground floor. That basement also held the kid refugees.

Slowly, Jackson made it to a crate that had a view to that control room.

Four guards were in the area on patrol duty. The area only consisted of two pads that were used for transporting refugees and guards, so it wasn't large. Jackson pulled his communicator out of his pocket and said into it, "I'm in position."

Clayton heard Jackson's call in and looked at Zakee.

"Let's go," said Ziggy. He ran to the front door of the office from the middle sector and stood on the side next to the glass door. He slowly peered into the first room and didn't see anyone. He looked into the rooms around it and didn't see anyone either. Turning around, Ziggy motioned for the rest of the group to come on over.

Ziggy was the first to walk in. He and Sarah were the two points at the front of the formation. Sarah transformed into her Blaziken and followed in behind Zakee. In the middle was Clayton. He was there so that he can support the points with his shadow, fire, and Earth Jutsu. Jake Anderson, the Nen user, guarded the back of the formation. He was setting traps in the rooms that they had already gone in.

Ziggy walked into the lobby. The walls were white and the desks were wooden. There are two hallways in the back and another door on the side of the lobby. They creeped into the room on the side of lobby and saw a doorway to the left hallway. No one was in that room either. They continued walking to the empty doorway. Just before reaching it, they heard a voice.

"Hey, did you hear someone come through the front door?" asked the voice.

It had an immediate reply. "Yeah, let's go check it out," said the next voice.

Zakee put his finger over his puckering lips. He walked over to the edge of the doorway and poked his head out to see who was coming. Two figures dressed in a black guard suit with a bullet-proof vest. They walked to the door and observed the lock. "I thought we locked the door last time?" pointed out the first guard.

Zakee turned to Clayton and nodded his head. Clayton made the rat hand sign and used his chakra to control his own shadow. He split the shadow into two needles and shot them at the guards' shadow. They stopped moving. Zakee dashed out to the guards and placed his palms on their back. He pushed his chakra into them and knocked them out with a mediocre genjutsu.

Jake stepped into the lobby. "Shouldn't we be loud, so we can attract attention away from Jackson?"

"I think he's right," seconded Sarah.

Ziggy looked around, sighed, and said, "Fine, let's go outside. Sarah do what you want with the inside."

"Yeah, take that, Clayton," said Sarah as he Blaziken cracking its knuckles.

"Ha, just try not to kill Jackson too you psycho," he replied.

Zakee, Clayton, and Jake were standing outside when sounds of anything and everything breaking came from the inside. A desk was thrown out the windows. Sirens were going off, and water suddenly shot from another window.

Breathing a little heavier now, Sarah smirked in content for the level of damage she caused. Walls had holes in them, desks, chairs, and machines were smashed to pieces, and there was a giant hole connecting the first and second floor.

"There's the intruder," yelled out a guard from around the corner. "Get it!"

Sarah readied her Blaziken and jumped into action.

"Let's go, Bella," said one of the guards. The guard next to him glowed then changed into a katana with a red hilt. The guard charged Sarah and slashed at her. Sarah ducked and dodged the first attack. The guard quickly adjusted his attack and began a flurry of slashes and jabs. Sarah side stepped and deflected the attacks with Blaziken's hardened talon-like hands.

In a split-second opening, Sarah planted her foot and spun around to kick the guard. "Blaze kick!" she yelled.

Building up fire in her foot and leg, she delivered a fiery kick that blew the guard through the wall.

Three more guards ran into the lobby. Two were making a series of hand signs while the other ran at Sarah with a katana. All three of them stopped, and said a different thing.

The first on the left finished her hand signs and said, "Earth Style: Swamp of the Underworld!" The floor turned into a swamp that was up to their knees.

The guard on the right yelled out, "Water Prison Jutsu!" Water began to form in a circle around Sarah. She could still breath, but couldn't move.

The guard in the middle then yelled out, "Dark Sword: Narukami!" as he rushed Sarah. He sliced at her and the water prison causing an explosion of dust, smoke, and water vapor. The guard sheathed his sword and stood up as the debris fell.

As the debris fell, a figure appeared next to a sphere that seemed to be the water prison. "There's no possible way that I did not cut through that simple prison Jutsu," exclaimed the guard! He jumped back to where his comrades were standing.

"You think a dull sword like that is even worth to clash against my weapons," Ziggy heckled as he held his own katana up. Smiling, he put his sword back in the sheath on his back.

"All you did was graze my katana. Now, to finish y'all off," said Zakee as he made a series of hand signs. "Water Style: Water Shark Bullet Technique!" Three sharks made of water appeared in front of Ziggy. They were each about five feet long and three feet tall with a mean look on their snout. Zakee released them, and they zoomed towards the three guards and blew them back into the wall too.

Down at the docks, the four guards outside the control room had split up. Two of them left for the fight up at the office. Jackson decided that this was his best time to attack.

With a quick burst of speed, he appeared behind the first guard and chopped his neck knocking him out. The second guard noticed him on his right. He transformed his hand into a scythe blade and tried to attack by slashing. Jackson grabbed his arm with his left hand. With his right hand, Jackson gathered chi into his palm, then slammed it into the chest of the second guard. The blast was so powerful it incinerated the solder.

He walked to the control room and opened the door. In front of a giant window was a desk full of control boards that had numerous buttons and microphones.

'I'll have to check this out on the way out,' Jackson thought. On the ground was a steel handle that was connected to a three-foot by three-foot square door. He opened the door to reveal a ladder going straight down. Jackson jumped down the hatch and land on solid ground about fifteen feet beneath the control room floor.

In front of him, about seventy yards away, stood a group of five guards. Four of the guards were in their black uniform, but the fifth was in black pants, a white guard's shirt, and a red bullet-proof vest.

'That must be the leader,' he thought.

"I'm going to have to fight them all either way," Jackson said to himself.

He began walking forward towards the group of guards. "So, who's gonna get pounded first?" he asked.

The group of guards turned around and began laughing some.

"Who does this guy think he is, Boss?" chuckled one of the grunts as he pulled two kunai from his pocket.

The boss didn't say a word.

Another guard began to take a few steps toward Jackson and said, "Hey, Dan. Wanna take him on with me?"

Dan twirled his kunai around his finger and said, "Let's crush him, Sim."

Dan bolted towards Jackson, his speed was above average for Jackson, but lower than top tier speed. Dan leaped in hoping to cut Jackson, but the attack was blocked by one of Jackson's counters. Dan was throw back into the ground as a result.

Right after Dan attacked, Sim yelled out, "Fire God's Bellow!"

A large blaze of fire shot out of Sim's mouth and toward Jackson. The blaze stood fifteen feet tall, leaving a four foot gap to the ceiling, and came at an incredible speed.

Jackson waited for the fire blast to reach him and jumped at the last second. He was levitating right beneath the ceiling just barely missing the fire. In an instant, Jackson flew straight for Sim.

As he flew right by Sim, Sim stopped the fire and engaged Jackson in hand to hand combat. Sim started with a series of combos that included jabs, hooks, knees, kicks, and more. On the defensive end, Jackson was starting to ware out from the fast punches and kicks. Jackson began building up his power while blocking the incoming attacks.

"Thor Blazer!" yelled out Dan.

A stream of fire surrounded by lightning shot at Jackson. He jumped backwards to gain some ground.

Jackson bent his fingers, placed the bottom of both his palms together, and put his hands near his left ear. "Gatlick Gun," Jackson yelled as he extended his arms and hand outward still with his palms connected. A purple blast shot from Jackson's palms and collided with the Dan's blast.

The contact created an explosion that threw dust, smoke, and dirt into the air. Because of the powerful blast, the room was also destroyed completely, so the underground passage is now fully exposed.

"Did you get him?" asked Sim.

Turning his head from one side to another, Dan replied, "I'm not sure."

Multiple small, yellow balls of chi suddenly came flying through the debris. The chi blasts would leave a tunnel between Jackson and Dan and Sim that let them see through the smoke. Dan looked through the tunnel and saw Jackson with one palm faced towards them. Jackson smirked as he fired off another round of key blasts.

Dan and Sim try their best to deflect and dodge the blasts, but a few balls happen to barely touch them. The contact is just enough to cause a small explosion resulting in damage. They stagger just a little.

"Is that all you've got?" yelled out Dan! The five other guards were now in this fight too. The guard with the white top stepped out front.

"It's time to put an end to this little game of yours," he said. "Let's see you stop this."

The cloud of smoke and dust suddenly disappeared. Jackson created a vacuum that sucked the debris out of the room just by slicing through the cloud. "I'm ready, hot-stuff," he said in reply. He stretched out his arms to the side and clenched his body to build up power.

The guard began to say a chant to himself, "Sprinkled on the bones of the beast! Sharp tower, red crystal, steel ring. Move and become the wind, stop and become the calm. The sound of warring spears fills the empty castle! Hado 63: Raikoho!"

"Final Flash!" yelled Jackson at the same time as the guard!

The guard shot a massive bolt of yellow, electricity-like energy at the Jackson, who also shot a wave of yellow chi infused with electricity at the guard. The two beams collide and the power struggle began.

The guard, desperate to do his duty, his job, poured more of his strength into it pushing back Jackson's Final Flash.

Jackson mustered up the strength to stop the advancement of the Hado spell, but it began to push him up into the sky.

Slaves in the area turned to see Jackson in mid-air fighting against a different yellow beam.

The earlier use of Gatlick Gun and the chi blasts depleted a lot of his energy. He concentrated on his energy. An image of Octavia's smile after he met her soared across his mind.

'That's right,' he thought. 'Octavia and all the other kids are counting on me to save them.'

"I can't let them get taken," Jackson muttered as parts of his hair began floating up.

"Give up, Saiyan," yelled the guard on the ground. "You are no match for my spells!" He placed all his power into this spell as it increased in size and force.

Jackson immediately felt the surge of power that was put into the guard's attack. Jackson's body tensed up from the strain being placed on the body. The attack was pushing him back. He had to do something, and do it now. The only thing he knew what to do at this moment was to give it his all. Jackson proceeded to put his everything into his Final Flash. The beam kept growing larger and larger, and the force was rising by the second. A yellow aura surrounded Jackson as he kept pushing and pushing out his energy.

"What is this?" asked the guard frantically. He could feel the pressure of the Final Flash taking over his beam. "No! I can't lose!" The yellow beam of Jackson's attack engulfed the guard's attack and hit him as well.

Completely exhausted, Jackson's yellow aura vanished and he floated back down to the ground with his shirt torn to shreds, hair damp from sweat, and pants with holes in them. He landed on the ground and fell onto his knees and hands. Sweat fell down his face and dripped onto the floor. His knees and thighs were shaking from exhaustion.

"Over here! We're over here," yelled a soft voice from around the corner!

Jackson lifted his head. "Please help us," it yelled again! Slowly, Jackson got back up on his feet.

Step after step he got to the corner. He turned it and saw a large cage filled with at least five boys and girls ranging from five to twelve. There were also at least fifteen other adults in the cage. Jackson reached for his communicator and brought it to his mouth. "I've got five kids and fifteen adults in a cage down here," he said to the communicator. Jackson walked closer to the door of the cage. "Don't worry. I'll get all of you out of here," he said to them.

The communicator began to speak. "Good, Zakee is handling the boss right now, so get them out and meet us at the rendezvous," said Jake from the other communicator.

Jackson put the communicator back in his pocket and walked to the door. "You might want to take a step back," he instructed. Using his finger, Jackson shot a chi blast at the lock of the cage. The lock broke and the door swung open freeing everyone.

"I knew you'd come! I told y'all that my guardian angel would rescue us," yelled out Octavia as she ran to Jackson. Streams of tears had stained her face and shirt. Jackson bent down and met her with a big, warm hug.

"I've got ya," he said to her in her ear.

She finally let go and said, "Thank you for saving us," as she wiped tears from her face. Jackson stood up and said, "I'd never let them take you away from your mother."

Jackson looked at the others and said, "If you want to escape, please follow me." Jackson, with Octavia right next to him, began walking to the ladder he climbed down. He took out the communicator and said, "I've got the captives. We are heading to the control room."

Jake, surrounded by a large group of guards, took a playing card in hand. It was the Jack of hearts. He threw the card at one of the guards with enough force, it impaled his throat. He slung his throwing hand back to him, and the card came flying back to his hand.

The other guards quickly lunged after Jake. However, many of their feet were stuck to the ground when they tried to move. The ones that were free, attacked Jake with whatever they had, but he jumped high into the air and took out a set of his cards. Making a circle with one arm, the cards formed a circle around him while he was still in the air. He thrust his arms forward and the cards shot down at all the guards that were trying to bring down Jake.

He landed on the ground and brought all but one of his cards back into his pack. He grabbed the communicator and responded to Jackson, "Roger that, Jackson. We'll meet you at the spot.

"You know," said a man wearing a white and black suit with a mining pin. "It's really pissing me off that you think you can wreck my city. As if I, the President, would let you do that." He was standing on the walkway right outside of the Devil's Corner. Ziggy was in front of the entrance with two kunai in hand.

"Why don't you do something about it," said Ziggy readying his weapons.

"Behold your destruction," yelled the President as he opened his arms. "Now, come and get some!"

Ziggy stood still for a moment. What could his magic be, he thought? He threw the two kunai at the President who just let them hit him.

"Why is he just taking it my hits," mumbled Ziggy.

He dashed behind the President and punched him in the kidney. The President threw his right elbow back knocking Zakee to the ground. Zakee jumped back a few yards to create some space. The President turned his head slowly and smiled.

Zakee began weaving hand signs and yelled out, "Wind Style: Wind Dragon!" Air currents behind him gathered and formed the head of a dragon. It shot straight towards the President who had turned towards the attack. He just stood there as the Wind Dragon went flying to him.

BOOM!

The dragon connected as it destroyed part of a shop. Dust that was thrown into the air began to settle.

The President stood there bent over. He stood up and looked towards Zakee and said, "Come. Let us fight like true men." He began walking towards Zakee.

Zakee agreed to the challenge and began to walk to meet the President. The two meet at the center, and Zakee spoke first saying, "You're gonna regret this."

The President laughed it off and responds by saying, "Ignorant fool!"

He swung at Zakee's face, but he countered the punch by grabbing his forearm and using the President's momentum to throw him.

Mr. Hunt stood back up and this time and did a combo of hits, blocks, and kicks on Zakee, who blocked, countered, and hit the President back.

"I guess you haven't noticed, huh," said the President. "Here's a hint. Every time you hit me, my power grows." The President's right arm began to glow a bright color.

The President dashed towards Zakee and before he knew it, Ziggy got hit at point blank range. His forearms were the only thing between the explosion and his face. The impact was so strong that it sent him through two walls of a nearby building.

"Now, it's time for my ultimate attack," yelled out the President. "I will use all the energy stored up from every time I've been hit this battle." The President's body began to glow a bright color as he began building his power.

Zakee walked out of the building and unwrapped the cloth around his wrists exposing written seals. "Come at me," he yelled!

The President yelled in anger and rushed towards Zakee. Zakee formed a series of hand signs and prepared to attack. 'I wonder if I can mix my wind and water chakra and what'd it make,' he thought.

"Water Style: Water Shark Blast!"

Three large sharks made of water formed in front of Zakee. The sharks didn't intimidate the President, as he kept running forward. He was shining brighter than ever now.

"Go," yelled Zakee!

The three water sharks zoomed towards the President at top speed. Zakee tried to infuse his wind magic into them, but nothing happened, so he stopped. The President braced himself for impact right before the sharks hit him causing an explosion that shook the walkways around them.

The smoke fell and let out a bright light. The President was still standing after that attack, and the darkness of space made him stick out even more.

"An attack like that makes me laugh," said the President with a chuckle. "I've had enough playing around time. I'm gonna end this with my next attack."

The President walked with purpose towards a staggering Zakee who was nearly out of chakra and energy. His left knee shook as it supported a firm standing while he brought a kunai up to his face. "You're not gonna do, shit, pal."

The President yelled in rage as he dashed towards Ziggy. He swung with his left arm, then his right arm, and then tried to hit him with a right hook, but Zakee ducked and dodge each attack. At the end of a series hits and counters with one another, they lock forearms as Ziggy's left forearms is pressing against the top of the President's left forearm.

Zakee saw the President smile as all the brightness left his body and focused in his right foot. With a swift round-house kick to the chest, Zakee was sent flying back with extreme speed into one of the walls behind him.

"That was my strongest kick. I focused every ounce of my power into it. Now be at ease with your defeat," said the President turning from Zakee to Sarah and Jake.

"So, your name is Sarah? Will you dance for me again," he asked walking closer and closer to her?

"That far enough," said a voice behind the President. Zakee was standing up with his knees bent and legs spread apart. He was shaking. He couldn't have more than a drop of chakra left. His hands were in the shape of the dragon hand sign. A puddle of water gathered near the President without him noticing.

"Yeah? What do you think you can do in your state," asked the President sarcastically?

Suddenly, the water from the puddle turned into thick needles and bullets. They shot at the President hitting him in the chest, legs, and arms. The impact of all the water blasted him up into the air. With all the chakra that Zakee had in his body, he cast this next Jutsu.

Water in the sky gathered and formed a large, blue dragon with red eyes. It coiled as it grew and grew. Once at max length, the water dragon let out a chilling roar that spayed water everywhere and made it look like it was raining. It let out another loud roar, but this time the breath of the roar was freezing cold. In the sky, the entire dragon began to freeze as the then water dragon was slowly forming into a monstrous ice dragon.

"This won't work," yelled the President! It was hard for him to make his way towards Zakee since the pressure and chakra he was emitting was producing a strong current of wind blowing away from him in all direction. "I will just absorb the impact then kill you!"

"I won't know unless I try, though," Zakee said as he silently commanded the ice dragon to come down on the President. The ice clanged and clinged on the way down to the ground. The dragon left a trail of steam from the hot air touching its freezing body. The ice dragon slammed into the President producing a large explosion.

Jackson was at the bottom of the ladder helping the refugees climb out of the secret tunnel. The ground began to tremble as a loud bang and crash welcomed a chilled breeze that made everyone shiver.

'Whatever that was,' he thought. 'We need to hurry.'

"Ok everyone, let's try and speed this up a tad," he said helping the others climb the ladder. He lifted the last person up and looked around the has been tunnel. He could hear other refugees screaming, guns being fired, and officers running everywhere. Flying out from the tunnel, Jackson grabbed the communicator and tried contacting Jake.

"Jake pick up," he said. "We're ready for extraction." He quickly turned a dial at the top, and it changed the communicator's frequency. "Alright Colby, the refugees and government are all yours."

Jackson ran to a gate, unlocked it, and opened it. On the other side stood a man wearing an orange jacket. He turned around and yelled out, "You did it!"

Jackson, with Octavia by his side, guided the refugees over to Colby. "Colby will take care of y'all for now on. He won't harm any of you."

Colby stood next to Jackson agreeing with everything said. "And, I do believe that there are people here to see the people that were held captive."

Colby ran over to the gate that he came in. He waved his hand and in came a group of people that can be assumed that they are the friends and loved ones of the people held captive. Jackson bends down to Octavia and said, "I know someone that would love to see you right now."

Jackson led Octavia to the edge of the docks where there was a lady dressed in refugee clothes with her back to them. She turned around slowly, and with a big smile and tears rolling down her face, she ran to her daughter and embraced her in a very long hug. "I'm so sorry, Octavia," she said repeatedly.

"It's okay," said Octavia. "He was here to save us," she said with a smile.

The mother smiled at Jackson and said, "You sure are right, sweetie."

A loud bang followed by a flash of light came from one of the top office floors behind the mom.

Too slow to react, Jackson saw a sniper laser soar into the chest of Octavia's mother. Upon impact, her eyes widened as she let out a gasp of air and yelped from pain. The shot knocked her back onto the ground.

Octavia ran up to her mother and knelt down beside her. "I love you, Octavia. So, so much," she said with a weakened voice.

Jackson ran up to the mom as she let out her final breath. The shot started a mass panic among the refugees and soldiers in the sector.

Octavia, on the other hand, was in pure shock. Her flood gates turned off and the waterworks turned on. She screamed for her mother as tears fell from her face and onto the clothes of her now deceased mom. For minutes, she wouldn't let go or stop crying, so Jackson stood next to her and defended her from the enemy's attacks. He reached for the communicator and said into it, "I need an evac for two."

"Roger that," said Jake back into the communicator. "We're coming in now."

From above, a starship lowered down far enough so that Jackson could fly up to the boarding ramp. Jackson turned towards Colby and asked, "Are you sure you've got this?"

Colby smiled and said, "Don't you worry my friend. I will not fail!"

Jackson turned to Octavia who was still crying on top of her mother. He bent down and said to her, "I'm sorry, Octavia, but we have to go, now." Her crying slowed down as she started to sniffle.

"Good, if you come with me, you'll be safe.? You don't have to be scared," said Jackson.

Octavia slowly looked up Jackson then back at her mother. "Good-bye mama," she said in return. That's all Jackson needed. He picked her up and flew to the ship's ramp that was down. On the way up, he was dodging attacks aimed for him. He landed and walked her to the door that was open for them. Jake greeted them at the door saying, "Come on in," as the wind howled around them.

Jackson gave Octavia's hand to Jake and said, "I'll be right back."

He flew off the ship and over to where the office stood. "This is for all the pain that you've caused this entire planet. Be gone. Out of existence." Jackson extended his right arm and began charging his power. An orange ball of light began to grow in front of his palm. It pulsed and vibrated as Jackson concentrated the chi inside the attack. "Let this be a symbol of starting over. Making a better path." Jackson paused. He flexed his arm and yelled, "Big Bang Attack!"

Jackson shoots the ball, which only grew once it left his palm. Upon impact, the large mass of chi grew more then exploded. The explosion destroyed the entire building and even some floors that lead down to the basement.

The sign of the previous faction has had been destroyed. Jackson flew back to the ship and walked into the main hold. Everyone gave him a high five and told him that destroying the main office was a nice touch. Sarah, Jackson, and Jake sat around the table and looked over at Octavia laying down on a couch.

"So, what are we going to do with her," asked Sarah?

Jackson sighed. "I don't know. I guess we can take her back to the base and see if she has a power, then train her."

Jake chimed in, "We should let her decide. She could be someone that works as a secretary or something within the government, a soldier like us, or something else."

Sarah smiled, "But, until then, we have to see what Zakee is going to say."

Zakee opened his eyes and saw the white walls and bright lights of the Ebon Hawk's Med Bay. An intense headache quickly attacked his head, and he immediately rubbed it.

"Good to see that you're awake." Sarah was working at her desk on Zakee's medical charts. "You shouldn't move around too much either. The amount of chakra that you put into your last attack, Explosive Bite of the Ice Dragon, would've killed a normal ninja. You're lucky that you aren't dead."

Zakee sat up in the bed. He removed the oxygen tube that went to his nose and looked at Sarah. "Well," he said. "Looks like I can use it without dying now." Sarah didn't say anything back to that. She continued writing in Zakee's folder. "How did we get back on the ship," he asked?

She stopped writing and looked at him. "I used my Kadabra to teleport us back here. I've been using its move, Recover, to help your condition."

Zakee exhaled as he laid back down. "If you don't mind, there is a piece of paper in my pants pocket. Take it to whoever is flying the ship and tell him to go to the coordinates on it. The last two weeks on this planet have been hell."

Sarah got up and went to Zakee's clothes that were hanging in a closet. Digging through one of the pockets, she didn't find anything, so she searched the other. Inside, was a small piece of paper folded into a small square. She read out the red words on the paper to herself, "Sector: Sergonia, Planet: Solia – Coordinate: H4."

_Sorry for the delay in posting a new chapter. My summer job has been demanding and honestly haven't felt a rush to post. I know that this fanfic has a lot of anime powers so it might be hard to keep up with, but it's always been something that I've daydreamed about. Like: how would something like that fit in today's world. Thanks for reading and more coming out soon!_

_ ~Aldon_


	24. Chapter 23: The Seven Shadows of Hell

_**This is a longer chapter. Over 10.5k words. Just a heads up, but I tried to keep it entertaining and flowing all the way through.**_

**Chapter 23**

Ryder was laying down on a bed with his hands behind his back. He was thinking of the times he had with Master Korvin on their missions. They had helped a few rebel regimes fight back against ISIS invaders; yet there were still missions that he HAD to take on because of either 'politics' or 'for a greater good' as explained by his old master. Regardless of the mission; there were always people that he killed in order to reach his goal.

Lifting his hand up in front of his face, Ryder stared at it recounting how many lives that one had had taken.

His room door opened and revealed woman with a notepad and pen. "The council is ready for you Mr. Ryder," she said.

This girl was about five feet and six inches. She had brown hair that barely made it past her shoulders. She was wearing yoga pants and a loose black white shirt.

Ryder sat up and slid on his sandals. "You look good, Becca."

It seemed like her long, skinny legs glistened in the light produced by the lights that lit his room.

She saw him check out her legs and said, "Cut it out perv and hurry up." She turned and walked outside.

Ryder strapped on his Jedi belt and lightsaber then left his room and followed Becca. Her black yoga pants were pulled up tight to her waist revealing the curves of her waist and a wedgie that showed her plump ass.

They were walking through a stone walkway lined with torches. It was an old place that whispered to Ryder as he continued through them. Soft words emerged from the depths of the stone walls.

Becca led Ryder to two large double doors. "I hope you're ready," she told him as she opened the doors.

The room was large and circular. In the middle was a large ring that encompassed a crest that resembled a phoenix.

In the front of the room were five thrones that looked like they were made of black diamonds. A single person sat in each of them except for one.

Ryder could immediately feel the incredible pressure that each of the persons on the thrones exerted. Even though Ryder was strong in the Force, the sheer power of these people made Ryder fall to a knee with a loud thud. It took everything he had just to keep himself from falling onto his chest. He lifted his now heavy head up to the people on their thrones.

From the left, the first chair was the empty.

"As you can tell, Colby isn't here with us. Funny thing really. He's dealing with something that your old comrades kind of fucked up for us," said a darkened figure in one of the chairs.

The chair second from the left of the dark figure was wearing a white lab coat. He was the head doctor of the facility. "It doesn't matter anyways. He's only good for infiltrating."

The man in the middle leaned forward enough that he revealed his stature. From a source of light that shined in from a window, he was athletically fit and had dark hair. He wore a set of black, light armor. All it was were small enchanted plates that overlapped his chest and arms. A brown fabric wrapped around his waist and on one side hung a silver hilt. This was the head of their council, Gambino. Not much was known about him.

To his left was another empty chair. From previous experiences, Ryder knew that Gouda sat there and hadn't been there since him and his crew arrived. He had only heard stories of him.

In the last chair sat Stacy, the Sadist. That was her nickname of course. The worst part about her, well could also be the best part about her, were her looks. She had a pair of breasts and ass that a man could only dream of. Her tits were plump and firm; they sat high on her chest.

Her butt was round and curvy. The leather pants she wore only defined each curve and crevice that presented itself.

"You've been here for five months, and you have progressed more than we expected. Your training has been going well; however, you haven't awakened your inner strength! That was our deal!" yelled Gambino. "You can become a better swordsman and Force wielder, but someone out there can always overcome your level of expertise in those fields. If you awaken your inner power, then you will be able to overcome any obstacle and then dominate your enemy!" yelled Gambino.

Ryder stood silent.

"I have a mission for you, Nero, and Ben."

Quickly looking up to his leader, Ryder asked "What is it, Master?"

"Fly to Orus in the Clingar sector. There, I want you to assassinate this bounty hunter. He has been trying to sniff us out, and we are tired of him," said Stacy. "He's strong, so watch out." She held out a polaroid picture.

Ryder walked up to her throne to grab the picture. When he tried to pull it from her hands; her grip only tightened. He looked up at Stacy who gave him a seductive smile then let go.

"That's it," said Gambino. "You can leave now."

Ryder bowed to the four councilors and left the room. He walked back to his room. On the way back, he grabbed his communicator and called out to Nero and Ben. "Meet me at the Rogue Shadow in an hour. Be packed for an assassination mission on a bounty hunter, so bring supplies."

Nero and Ben answered, "Roger" one after the other.

Ryder arrived at his room and grabbed his backpack. He filled it with spare clothes, a few books, and his mask. He didn't really need much for the trip, so he went left for the Rogue Shadow.

The black star ship was exactly where he left it. Other ships surrounded it, but they were outclassed significantly. The ramp was down, so he wondered who was in it. He walked up the ramp and into the main hold yelling out, "Anyone in here?"

A few seconds passed before he heard a familiar voice say, "Yeah, one second" as sounds of tools falling filled the ship. He knew exactly who this was.

"Wow, I knew you were clumsy, but I thought you had gotten better with it," Ryder said while laughing.

Katie walked out from the engine room with an annoyed face. "Well, I have to fix parts of the ship before y'all takeoff and explode." She was wearing work boots, short shorts, a cutoff shirt with a sports bra, and had her hair up in a ponytail.

"Hey now," she said pointing at her eyes. "Eyes are up here."

Ryder laughed and said back, "Don't dress like that and I will quit. Actually," he paused, "No. I'd still do that."

Katie took off her gloves and walked over to Ryder. "Oh yeah? How about this?" She walked up close to Ryder. Biting her lower lip, she stood up on her tippy toes and looked up at Ryder. Her breasts were pressing up against Ryder's chest. Ryder lowered his head and leaned in to kiss Katie. Right before their lips locked, a loud noise came from outside the ship.

"I wonder if Master Ryder is in the ship already," said Ben loudly.

"I'm sure he is," assured Nero as they walked up to the ship.

Katie smiled and turned away, swiping her butt against Ryder's waist. She went back into the engine room as Nero and Ben walked in.

"See, there he is," said Ben.

Nero threw his bag on a couch then sat at the table. "So, what's the plan, boss."

Ryder slowly walked to the middle of the main hold and said, "We are going to Orus in the Clingar sector to assassinate a bounty hunter. His name is Dre Grimlore, and he uses the Byakugan and wood style Jutsu. We leave when Katie finishes up in the engine room."

Katie walked into the main hold and to the door. Walking with some pep in her step she said, "Good luck on your mission and stay safe you three!"

She left down the ramp, and Nero immediately blurted out, "She is fine, no lie."

Ryder laughed and said, "Oh, we know you're not lying. Now get to the cockpit and take us to Orus."

"Roger that," he responded. He walked into the cockpit and began setting up everything.

Ryder looked over at Ben and said, "Let's go train some. Go put yours and Nero's things up then meet me in the training room." Ryder left and walked to the training rooms.

Ryder sat down with his legs crossed and closed his eyes. Within a minute, both of his lightsabers, broken down to the core, were floating in front of him. The purple and two red crystals were suspended above their metal hilts.

"Come, come here next to me," voiced Ryder.

Ben, who was watching from the door, walked slowly towards his master. A calm but on edge aura seeped from the man he looked up to. Ben began to sit down, but before his backside hit the ground, Ryder voiced out and said, "No, keep standing."

Confused, Ben stood back up waiting for instructions; however, Ryder didn't say anything.

"I sense that you feel troubled, Master," said Ben.

Keeping his eyes closed and still being able to organize his lightsaber parts, Ryder said, "Yes, we are going against a strong opponent this time, we can't lose focus. You're allowed to be afraid or nervous, but you can't allow those feelings to cloud your judgment when you must make decisions in the moment. If you succumb to those feelings, you will lose yourself along with the ones you're close to."

The pieces to the lightsabers began to form two groups. They slowly came together to form the mold of the two lightsabers side by side. "With this opponent, you have to use everything that you've learned up to this point. We don't know anything about the planet or the people there; he could have some friends with him. I have confidence that you'll do what's right when the time comes," said Ryder.

Ben just stood there frozen in place. This was going to be the first mission where he wasn't just a bystander. "Yes, sir," he said quietly.

Ryder stood up with his two lightsabers in hand and said, "As long as you follow the Force, you will be fine, kid."

The grin that Ryder was wearing on his face somehow gave Ben confidence. "So, what's the lesson for today," Ben asked.

Still grinning, Ryder put the lightsabers on his hilt and did a hand stand. After being up for a few seconds, Ryder slowly lifted his right hand up and out to his side. Keeping still, he said, "I want you to hold this position for an hour. If you happen to do this, hold the position and just meditate on the Force. Become one with it."

Ryder brought his right hand back to the ground beneath his head then fell to his feet and stood up. "Any questions?"

Ben looked at his hands then back up to Ryder. "No. I've got this."

Ryder smiled and said, "Well come get me when you're done," as he walked out of the training room. Ryder looked back through a window and saw Ben attempt his first hand stand, but failed tremendously. Laughing, he walked back to the cockpit to talk to Nero.

"How long until we get there," he asked Nero?

"About five hours. Do you know anything about this place?" asked Nero.

"Gambino told me that there are two things that we should watch out for here: the mafia, and spies lurking throughout the town that report back to them. They could be watching us from the second we land," Ryder explained. "That's why we have to wait for the right opening before we kill our target."

'Our target, a Byakugan user,' Nero thought. "Got any secret strategies to deal with his Byakugan," he asked?

Ryder looked at Nero with a carefree expression that showed zero confidence. "Nope," he laughed a little. "I guess we should just overwhelm him with power." Ryder was leaning back in his chair with his hands folded behind his head.

Nero put his head on the dashboard in front of him and replied, "Yeah, we're gonna die."

Ryder flipped the page in one of the books that he brought. The title of the book read, "Sith Magic."

"Ryder, we are flying into Orus' orbit. I'm about to send in our clearance codes," said Nero. The Rogue Shadow was slicing through the clouds in the bright blue sky. A large city with a few skyscrapers came into view from the distance and got closer and closer with every second.

"Please transmit clearance codes or turn around. Otherwise, you will be shot down," said a voice coming through the speakers.

Nero pressed a red button that was beneath a microphone and said into it, "Transmitting now." With his other hand, Nero pressed a few buttons then turned to Ryder with his fingers crossed. About ten seconds passed before a voice came through the speaker again.

"Starship 2433B12, you are clear for landing."

"Stage one complete. While you're landing us, I'll get Ben," said Ryder standing up from his chair. He walked up to the training room doors that had a window in them and saw Ben as still as ever in a one-arm handstand. Books, his lightsaber, and other objects in the room were floating around him. Ryder opened the door and stepped inside.

_His connection to the Force is incredible. With the proper training, he could be molded into someone very formidable. Who knows. He might just pass you._

'Well he has a long way before that happens, Lord Vader,' responded Ryder to the voice from within.

Impressed with Ben's advancements, he said, "Alright Ben. Good job. That was incredible. I could feel your concentration from the cockpit. However, we're here. Time to get your things ready." Ryder turned and left the training room then went to his own room.

The only thing Ryder needed to bring were his two lightsabers, his mask, and some money. He put on his loose dark brown pants, black boots, and a black shirt with a collar that came up to his chin. On his coat rack hung a black jacket with two red stripes on the shoulder. Ryder grabbed it and slung it on. He grabbed his old master's mask and immediately had a flashback to when he first received it.

He was leaving the ship going to make his first lightsaber. Master Korvin had ran down the ramp and gave it to him.

Ryder placed the mask in an inside pocket in his coat.

"One more thing," he said to himself. Ryder walked to his nightstand and opened his drawers. Inside, two metal hilts rolled to the front. One was distinctively smaller than the other, but Ryder knew that it made no difference. It was a powerful blade. He grabbed the larger hilt and placed it in a pocket that was inside the left side of his jacket. Ryder did the same thing with the smaller lightsaber, but the other pocket was on the right side of the jacket. He looked to the doorway and saw his oldest friend there, R2.

"Ready, buddy," he said as he walked by him giving him a pat on its tin head.

Out in the main hold sat Ben and Nero who had been ready for a few minutes. Nero was sitting on the couch with tan capris, a white button-down shirt completely unbuttoned exposing his 8-pack, and a pair of black Ray-ban sunglasses. His short golden hair made him look like a surfer from Miami, Florida.

"How about you throw on an actual shirt and get rid of the glasses," said Ryder. "We aren't supposed to stick out like a sore thumb."

"Fine," Nero said. He buttoned up his shirt then threw his sunglasses to the side.

"That's…. better."

Next to him sat Ben, who was visibly nervous. He was wearing black boots, red pants, a white undershirt, with a gray jacket that buttoned across his chest. A black sash around his waist covered his lightsaber and utility belt. His legs was shaking and right when Ryder walked in, he jumped up to his feet.

Pointing with his thumb, Nero said, "This kid hasn't stopped moving around since we landed."

"Calm down, Ben," Ryder said placing his hand on his shoulder. "Be one with the Force, and it will calm you down. Make you more alert." Ryder walked past the two and towards the exit door. "Well, here we go," he said as he pressed the button that opened the door.

A blue hologram lit up on top of a short circular table. The hologram stood about two feet tall. It showed a human figure with a robe on and his hood up. "Take the golden hair one, and kill the young kid, but keep the one in black alive. Make him suffer," the hologram voiced.

The receiver nodded and said, "Yes, sir. I'll show him pain that he will never forget."

"One last thing, my apprentice," said the hologram. "Torture the one with golden hair. I'm sure that it will make the Jedi squirm."

The other figure bowed and turned off the hologram. He turned and walked out of the small room that he was in. Two Devaronians and one Falleen were standing outside the door dressed in dark clothes and a black robe over those. "Walk with me," said the figure. 

Ryder, Nero, and Ben began walking down the streets of the city. There were many streets that converged in the middle of the city at a large town square. A few skyscrapers were around the square next to the smaller buildings that had swarms of different races walking around. There were green aliens to jawas and werewolves. This city was a melting pot for many races; very populated and busy.

The three made their way to the square avoiding any form of attention or detection. In the distance, a young Twi'lek had a lemonade stand that was a getting a little business from people passing by.

"Do any of y'all want a lemonade. I'm pretty thirsty," said Nero. He was wiping sweat from his forehead with his white shirt.

"I'll gladly join," said Ben. "I completely regret wearing pants."

"I'll stay here and keep a lookout then," said Ryder scanning the rooftops.

Nero and Ben walked over to the young Twi'lek and said, "Can I get three lemonades?" The little girl nodded and poured three cups full of her homemade lemonade. "Three shmeckles," she said in reply. Nero placed three shmeckles on the table right when two large, burly men walked up to the stand.

"Two lemonades and make sure they're cold," he said as he put two shmeckles on the table. The girl poured two cups and handed them to the men and put the money in a tray. The men drank it and made a sour face in disgust.

"This is the worst shit I've ever tasted," yelled one of the brutes. The other flipped the lemonade stand and threw his drink at the little girl. She was now crying rivers as she sat on her butt looking at her wrecked stand.

The first man walked up to her, brought his hand back and said, "This is what you get for trying to sell me crap." He swung the back of his hand down toward the face of the little girl.

In a blur, a person with blonde hair appeared in front of the girl and blocked the swing with his foot. The man with his hands in his pockets, leaned on his foot that made contact with the punch. Slowly lifting his head, he said, "Don't you dare ever hit a little girl." Using the same foot, Nero roundhouse kicked the brute into a close by wall.

"Damnit," said Ryder under his breath. "Gotta do everything in a flashy way."

A slow clap came from behind Nero and the little girl. From around a corner walked a white male with a long sleeve white shirt and black shorts with a pouch wrapped around his right leg. "Impressive showing of power right there," he said.

He got about ten yards from Nero then said, "So, why did you hit my worker like that. Don't you know that I can take you to prison now?"

"No way!" yelled out Nero.

"The other guy shouldn't have destroyed the girls stand!" protested Ben.

The man looked at Ben, "You shouldn't have messed with them… Ben."

'How does he know his name,' thought Ryder.

Suddenly, a power surge began swelling up in the unknown man, but from the outside, nothing looked different at all. Ben felt this presence as well, so he reached down and grabbed his lightsabers and ignited its gold blade. By this time no civilians were around, and Ryder was hiding behind a corner because multiple other people dressed completely in black began appearing. At least fifteen people surrounded Ben and Nero who were in attack position now.

"So, you want to try and fight your way out, do you?" asked the man sarcastically. "I believe that it's proper etiquette to exchange names in battle, and I already know both of your names, so without further ado. I am Dre Gilmore; your executioner."

_That's your guy. Go get him!_

Ryder ignored the voice inside him and remained hidden.

Dre disappeared in a blur and reappeared right behind Ben with a kunai in hand. Surrounding it with wind chakra to sharpen it, he thrusted it towards Ben's back. However, sensing Dre's move, Ben side stepped the attack, spun and sliced his lightsaber through Dre's chest.

Upon contact, Dre poofed into a cloud of smoke. "A clone," mumbled Ben. Ben turned back around to see if Dre was there, but he wasn't. Suddenly, walking out from the cloud of smoke behind Ben, Dre shoved the kunai right through Ben's chest. It was so quick that neither Nero, Ben, or Ryder noticed it happening.

Blood began to trickle down from the corner of Ben's mouth as he stumbled and fell to his knees.

"No!" yelled Nero at the top of his lungs. He jumped high into the air, but one of the robed men appeared right behind him with his forearm bands unwrapped. They wrapped around Nero within a second, and the figure sent Nero to the ground at high speeds while spinning. The crater from Nero slamming into the ground had a ten yards radius.

"I know that you're here, Ryder!" yelled out Dre into the streets. "You better come out or your buddy, Nero here will die too! You already failed with this young one!" Dre pointed his kunai at Ben and the puddle of blood around him.

"Ma… master," stuttered Ben as he spit out blood. "Where are you? Why aren't you here?" Tears rolled down his eyes. His once blue eyes, now tainted with a hint of yellow and orange.

Ryder stood still. Tears still rolling down his face. He could fill the warmth of rage and wrath fill this stomach and soul.

'What should I do?' he thought. 'This guy is on a whole new level.' Ryder punched the corner of the brick building that he was hiding behind. The entire corner was sent in multiple directions as brick flew everywhere.

"There you are," said Dre and he turned to Ryder. Brick, dust, and smaller rocks were suspended in the air around the dark pressure Ryder was putting out. "This is a surprise," Dre said as veins began bulging around his eyes. "Byakugan," he yelled!

Ryder reached out his right hand and gathered the Force in his body. He pulled the hand back to his shoulder then thrust it towards Dre, sending a massive storm of lightning towards his opponent.

"Not good enough, Raven," said Dre with a laugh. He disappeared and reappeared behind Ryder, who jumped high into the air to dodge an incoming attack.

Taking out a handful of shuriken, Dre threw them at the airborne Jedi. Ryder reached out his hand, and froze the shuriken in place. Immediately, he threw them back at Dre.

Dre simply jumped out the way and waited for Ryder to land on the ground.

Using the Force, Ryder pulled his small, red lightsaber to his hand and ignited it. He dashed towards Dre who pulled out a katana and coated it with blue chakra. Ryder swung down from up high then jabbed at Dre's chest. After both were blocked, Ryder spun and swung at his opponent's ankles.

Dre jumped up to dodge the attack, but Ryder accounted for this. With his hand brought back, he thrusted it forward sending Dre into a wall behind him with a Force Push.

Ryder threw his lightsaber, but it missed Dre and impaled the wall a few feet to his left. Walking forward towards Dre with his right hand still out in front, he clinched his fist. His red lightsaber immediately sliced towards Dre's head, but he ducked and rolled out of the way.

With his lightsaber back in hand, Ryder brought his weapon above his head as a sign of Form five. Dre smiled as he found his opening.

Using his chakra, Dre gave him an incredible boost of speed. He dashed close to Ryder and jabbed him in his chest with both his hands. Dre quickly followed these jabs with more and more.

After a few of the jabs, Ryder's lightsaber deactivated and fell to the floor. He stumbled backwards as Dre continued jabbing him in his arms, legs, chest, and neck. Finally, Dre shouted, "Sixty-four palms!"

With one more jab to the chest, Ryder consciousness faded as he flew five yards backwards onto the ground.

"And this guy is special?" scoffed Dre under his breath.

Dre signaled three men to grab the bodies and take them to their hideout. They grabbed them and instantly teleported them to their warehouse.

Dre walked up to the same hologram table and turned it on. The same hooded figured appeared as a blue hologram. Dre knelt down on a single knee and said, "The mission is complete. I killed Ben, and the other two are unconscious."

"Good, good," said the hooded figure. "I will be there shortly to oversee the rest of this."

"As you wish my Lord," responded Dre then he turned off the hologram. "Get those two set up," Dre told a squad of guards.

Ryder opened his eyes to see a large monitor in front of his face. He was strapped down to a chair with Force-cancelling handcuffs around his wrists. "You know this was an idiotic mission," said a voice from behind Ryder. "Why were you three here?"

Ryder tried to speak, but the cloth around his mouth made it impossible to understand him. The voice walked to the front of Ryder and crouched in front of him. The veins on the side of eyes were bulging as his pale white eyes were focused on him.

"Today, you will suffer more than any man that has ever lived. Let's begin with this." Dre turned on the monitor and the video was paused at a specific frame. The frame showed Dre stabbing Ben through his chest with a kunai encased with wind. The same warmth from before filled Ryder. He knew that it was his rage intensifying within himself but didn't stop it.

"You don't like this do you. The fact that I killed your precious apprentice. Pathetic," he scoffed. "Soon, my master will be here and he will end you himself." Dre spat at Ryder then left him by himself with the video on loop.

Ryder opened his eyes to the door of his secluded room opening, and four figures walked in. The first two were guards that were escorting the other two. The next figure, Ryder recognized. His long-sleeve white shirt and black shorts immediately gave away his identity. It was Dre walking with his head held high. Lastly, a figure with a dark robe on walked in. The hood covered his eyes and half of his face so that his identity remained unknown. "I hear that young Jedi was easy enough to kill, isn't that right, Dre," he said.

"The blade went through his chest like a knife through warm butter," responded Dre giving a chuckle. "It's too bad that no one was around to help him when he needed it the most."

Steam was coming off Ryder either due to his rage or his body working so hard to free itself. His eyes focused on the hooded figure as he just stared at Ryder. "Let's begin the fun," he said.

Dre reached towards a curtain and pulled it down to reveal a double mirror, and on the other side sat a golden hair man restrained to the chair. Ryder yelled out but the rag around his mouth muffled his voice.

In the background, a large burly man with a white apron walked towards Nero. A silver tray was resting on top of his hands and forearms. He came up next to Nero and crouched towards him. "Try and stay awake for all of this. There's a surprise at the end," snickered the torturer.

Nero squirmed at the sight of scissors, a scalpel, a saw, tweezers, pliers, and a sickle on the silver tray. As if he was teasing Nero, he began playing eenie-meanie-miny-moe with his instruments. The first instrument was the scalpel, and the torturer smiled as he sliced down the side of Nero's cheek.

The hooded man looked back at Ryder and said, "All this can be stopped if you give me the name and location of the man that sent you." Ryder kept quiet as the screams of his best friend echoed throughout the base. Tears rolled down his face as he struggled to set himself free, but he never could do so. As his rage built, so did a strange pressure that came from Ryder as well. The pressure was strong enough to crush any metal around the area.

Ryder's eyes then turn red with three black tomes connected by a ring surround the black pupil. With a flex of his eyes, Ryder casted powerful genjutsu on Dre and his master. Ryder began trying to use every resource at his disposal to get free.

He heard a voice softly say, "A genjutsu like that won't work against me, you fool." The hooded man extended his hand and with some power, he slammed Ryder into his chair. Behind the hooded man, Dre was bent over gasping for air.

"You bastard," he mumbled as he walked quickly towards Ryder getting his Gentle Fist techniques ready. A quick jab at Ryder sent a strong shockwave of air towards him, but it suddenly dissipates into nothing. The arm of the master was in-between Dre and Ryder.

"You won't hurt this one, understand?" demanded the master.

Dre bowed his head as a sign of apology and said, "Yes, master. Forgive my actions."

"We will meet again soon, Jedi," said the hooded man.

The screams of Nero yelling filled Ryder's head as he passed out from exhaustion. About two hours later, he heard a knock on his mirror. It was the torturer standing on the other side waving his hand, making sure Ryder saw everything. He had a strange grin on his face this time. He walked up behind Nero and stood there staring at Ryder.

He punched Nero in the cheek, and Nero jolted to the side then went back to how he was before, hanging down towards his chest due to all the torturing. The brute laughed in pleasure of his work.

Ryder could see cuts and bruises all over his body. Blood ran down from his head and face. It looked like the tip of his fingers were bruised from the nails being ripped off. His white sleeves were ripped, and his shirt was unbuttoned revealing his now bloody eight pack. Nero was in bad shape. An inch from death it seemed.

The torturer reached down to the ground and pulled up a bucket. He reached into the bucket and pulled out a black spider the size of a quarter that had a red dot on its back. Slowly, he placed it on the crown of Nero's head. Then, he took the whole bucket and poured all the spiders on the neck, head, and shoulders too.

Gradually, the spiders worked their way into the ear canals, mouth, nostrils, and any other holes while biting their way to the brain. Writhing in pain, Nero kicked the ground and threw his body in every direction, and Ryder was forced to watch it all. His eyes were burning at the sight of this torturing method. After fifteen seconds of the spiders crawling into every exposed hole on Nero; he went limp.

The executioner turned around towards Ryder and walked up to the mirror. "Seems like your buddy wasn't that tough after all!"

Fueled with rage, Ryder's blood boiled at the sight of his friend unconscious out of his reach. Suddenly, Ryder, with his Sharingan, saw a life force appear from behind the torturer.

Nero, with a bloody face, eyes drooped, fingers broken, scraps of skin peeled off, and clothes partially torn off, appeared right behind the torturer's shoulders. Quickly, Nero blinked his eyes then appeared on top of the torturer having already twisted his head around one hundred and eighty degrees. Nero jumped from his torturer then walked to the exit door.

"You won't get away that easily," said the torturer rising from the ground fixing his neck. He placed his hands firmly on the ground and pushed his magic through the ground. It slowly became soft, and Nero got slowly absorbed by it. However, Nero manifested two kagunes from his back and shoved them into the ceiling. He flung himself at his torturer with his kagunes in a drill-like motion. The brute was not ready for this kind of power from a mere teen as Nero's tails blew a hole in his chest.

Nero stood up, looked at the mirror, and walked towards it. With blood trickling down the corner of his mouth, Nero tilted his head and stared. With a swift kick of his leg, Nero demolished the wall separating him and Ryder.

Nero stood there staring at Ryder. His blonde hair had red in it from the spider bites and blood. His eyes hung low with dark rings formed around them. He walked up to Ryder. One of Nero's kagunes raised into the air and hovered over Ryder. He pointed a kagune at Ryder's throat.

Ryder gulped then flexed his Sharingan. Immediately, Nero was under a genjutsu, and he dropped unconscious to the ground.

"Seems like you're getting a hold of your Sharingan," said a voice at the door. Gambino was standing there draped in purple robes looking at them both. "I knew that you three would fuck up, so I came. However, I never expected that you'd lose the kid on this mission."

Ryder said still seated, "Well, are you gonna untie me?"

Gambino looked at Dre behind him and nodded his head.

"Got it, boss," responded Dre. Veins bulged on the sides of his white eyes as he could see the chakra flowing to Ryder's eyes. He widened his legs and bent his knees and concentrated on increasing his own chakra.

Carefully, Dre began jabbing Ryder in the chest with hands cloaked in chakra. After a series of jabs, he stepped back and stared at Ryder. He was panting for air with blood slowly being absorbed by the shirt.

Ryder's Sharingan deactivated due to the attack on his chakra system. "And now for the final step," he said. He wove the serpent hand sign. A four by four piece of wood emerged from the floor behind Ryder and slammed into the back of his head in an instant knocking him out.

Turning and walking away, Gambino told Dre, "Good, now take their bodies to the ship." Dre gathered the two unconscious bodies under his arms and followed his commands.

Ryder slowly opens his eyes and saw a man standing in front of him. "Even though the Assassination mission was a fail. You succeeded in awakening an inner power or two."

Ryder couldn't move around due to the restraints on his new chair.

Confused about the situation Ryder asked, "What's going on?"

Gambino turned to Ryder and said, "I was the hooded man." Dre walked in from the background. "This was all part of my plan for you to awaken the beast within you. Congratulations, a few more successful missions and you might even hold a seat in the council. You did well not to give up my name or location. You almost have my full trust."

Ryder was still in shock. 'But what about Ben and Nero's torture?' he thought.

"Sorry to kill off your apprentice, Ben. It was just to help you out of course," said Dre as he shrugged his shoulders. Nero was fastened to a chair behind Ryder and was finally waking up. He was no longer berserk, but Ryder could feel the anger and rage within him.

"So, you killed and tortured two of my friends just to get me to reach another power level?" asked Ryder.

Gambino and Dre said nothing.

"There is still one last task for you to gain my full trust, Ryder," said Gambino. "A few days ago, we found someone lurking around the city following you. He's currently in the holding cells. Go and interrogate him. Kill him if he doesn't provide anything of use. He's a Jedi, so be careful."

Ryder sat quietly trying to sort everything out. He was pissed at what they did to his friends just for his own power. "Can Nero join me. I'm sure he will prove useful during the interrogation."

Gambino nodded in approval.

"Now that we have gotten that out of the way, there are things I must do. Come to the Council's chambers when you're finished," explained Gambino.

Dre released Ryder and Nero from their restraints who both looked like they wanted to kill Dre. "He's in cell #304B. Don't take too long. The council awaits you both," Gambino said from the door.

_Kill that fucker when you get the chance._

That was one thing that Ryder could agree with.

After Ryder told Nero about how he went berserk, Nero just stared at Ryder. "What?" asked Ryder.

"Why weren't you there to prevent Ben dying?" asked Nero.

'Shit. I knew he was going to ask that,' thought Ryder. "I don't know. I froze up. For some reason by body wouldn't move," he said looking at his hands.

After a few minutes of silence, the two left the room and headed towards the cell. On their way, Murdoch and Katie pass them in the hallway.

"Hey, you guys!" yelled out Katie. "Good to see y'all again! Where's Ben?"

Ryder bit his bottom lip and kept walking to the cell barely acknowledging Katie and Murdoch.

"What's wrong with them?" Katie asked Murdoch.

"I don't know," Murdoch responded. "But, they don't look very happy. Let's leave them be for now. They'll tell us when they're ready."

Ryder and Nero reached the front of the holding cells and held up a laminated badge to the guards. "Go on ahead," said the guard.

Cell 304B was the last on the right. Ryder looked at Nero then put on the mask that was given to him so long ago. They opened the door and saw a middle-aged man with a beard shackled to the wall.

"So, my executioners have arrived and they are mere boys." The man was staring directly at Ryder. "I don't know why they chose you two, but I'm glad they did. I like the mask," he said laughing. The man flipped his hair out of the way, and Ryder nearly cried then and there when he saw the face. He knew exactly who was chained up. The same soft, wise voice. The same color of hair. The same bad smell.

He took off his mask and said "Master Korvin, how the fuck did you get here?"

Korvin smiled and said, "There was still one last thing that I had to do before I died. It's good to see my two of my favorite students. I heard from sources that you were landing on my planet, so I had to go see if that was true, and thank goodness it was."

Looking frantically, Ryder said to his old master, "We have to get you out of here."

"Wait, Ryder. Let me say a few things first," said Korvin. "Time is of the essence, so this must be quick."

The room darkened, and an intense aura was coming from Korvin. "Nero, your will is unbreakable, like your loyalty towards Ryder. Use your powers to stay by his side through the toughest of times that lie ahead. Be his shield and his sword. Because, you two are about to go through things that would make a grown man crazy."

He took his eyes from Nero and placed them on Ryder. "Now, Ryder, I found you about four years ago, and that's when you decided to come with me. I could sense the Force and other powers stirring within you at that moment and boy have you grown." Korvin shut his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes, they were red with a strange pin wheel design in the middle. "You possess this same power. I'm sure you will gain this soon. What I'm about to ask of you will be very hard, so, Nero, I'm giving you the task of making sure it happens. I know that you two were sent here to kill me, and Ryder you must be the one to do it."

Ryder's jaw dropped in shock. The magnitude of what he was telling Ryder and Nero was so strong that tears were now building up in their eyes. Korvin waved his hand and a green swirling portal appeared. "Ryder, reach into the portal and grab the jar that is inside."

He looked at the portal in confusion, back at his master, then again at the portal. He reached inside and pulled out a jar that had a pair of brown eyes.

"When you kill me, take my eyes and put them into this jar to preserve them, and place these other eyes into my sockets. When the time is right. Replace your eyes with mine. You'll know when that time will be. This will give you strong, new powers." Tears we're rolling down both Ryder's and Nero's face as their master took one last deep breath.

"Why did you have to get captured?" asked Ryder as he wiped his face.

"This was not in my plan, and the head of the council is not easy to defeat," responded Korvin.

"Now, do what you came to do. There is no time for questions; Gambino will be here any second to observe. This will not be the end. I'm very proud of you both. And, may the Force be with you, always." He said with a large smile.

Ryder ignited both of his red lightsabers and made an "X" with them, and he had Korvin's neck on the outer meeting point of the two blades. "We'll never forget all the things you did for us, Master. Thank you." Ryder's eyes were blood red with the sharingan as tears flowed down his face. He pulled the two blades apart, consequently beheading their former master.

As he shut his eyes tightly, tears rolled down his face in a constant stream. Korvin's smile slowly faded as his body went limp and fell. Ryder stood still, but the air around him was thick and heavy. Chains, keys, chairs, and other objects began to shake violently. His own clothes and hair were flying upwards as if there was a giant fan beneath him. Anger, love, and revenge were building up to their caps inside Ryder. While just standing there over his master's dead body, he tilted his head back and let out a loud yell, dispersing the built up power and anger.

At the command center on the ship, the captain was standing a few feet away from a giant window that peered into the space in front of them. The only thing out in front of them were two escort cruisers.

'Good,' thought the captain. 'We are on pace to make it to Tremor in the Tego sector.'

A young cadet down at the radar system said up to the captain, "Sir, we are detecting a very large power surge from within the ship. Should we sound the alarm?"

The captain turned from the cadet and to the window and said, "No, I'm sure it is the execution that is happening right now. The ship can handle it." The cadet looked at the others and back at her monitor. "What size power levels does that radar pick up?" asked the captain.

"It picked up large scale energy level increase from 800,000 to 1,700,000," explained the cadet.

The captain smirked in admiration. "Seems like we have a powerful prisoner," he said.

Ryder wiped his eyes and walked over to his former master and grazed his hand over his face. His Sharingan had a unique pinwheel design that had six tomes with a circle connecting them all. Using his fingers, Ryder gauged out his master's eyes and replaced them with the decoys. Ryder sealed the jar and placed it in his large pouch. He grabbed his master's head by the hair and placed it in a sack that Nero was holding open. Ryder slowly turned towards the door with Nero by his side. His head hung low. He walked to the door and looked back at Nero.

His eyes were still red, but the pinwheel was a different design. It looked like two different bladed fuma shuriken stacked on top of each other but turned as if to reveal each blade.

Within a few seconds, his eyes turned back to his blue eyes. He wiped his face, and walked to the door. Without saying a word to the other and not making eye contact with anyone else on the ship, the two made their way down a few different hallways and to the entrance to the council's room.

Ryder and Nero walked to the center of the floor and knelt on the ground. Slowly, he took the head out of the bag and set it on the same bag.

"Looks like we have two skilled executioners," said Strike.

"They are two of my promising assets," said Gambino.

"Guarantee you that they wouldn't be able to stand up to my guys," said Colby leaning forward.

"So, what's their business here?" asked Dr. van Hooser.

"These two are incredible assets that we have acquired. We need to use them. Ryder here is a capable Jedi that also has the Sharingan. Nero on the other hand has the power of the string-string fruit, and he's a ghoul. I vote that we create a faction that is directly connected to us. Apart from the military. They only listen to us and only do OUR bidding. We put together a strong team and they might just beat out ISIS's Ten Degrees. That would mean domination. We would have to plan for the battles, but this squad that… strikes from the shadows, will be the foundation of our military advancements."

The other members were very interested looking at each other. Stacy leaned forward and asked, "How many should we gather?"

Gambino scratched his chin and answered, "Seven. That's the perfect number for the Rogue Shadow. Matter in fact, they will be called, The Seven Shadows."

Strike leaned back, "No lie, I kind of like that."

Gambino looked at the others and asked, "Does anyone object?"

No one said anything. "Then that's it. The Council of Anubis' Seven Shadows are now official." He looked down at Ryder and Nero. "Go out a form your team. We trust your judgement in the selection, but we will let you know if we want someone specific on the team." Ryder and Nero bowed and left the room.

Ryder and Nero began walking to the cafeteria. Neither of them said a word. The stone walkways only added to their bad mood. There was nothing that they could say that would make them feel better after killing their very own Master. Instead, Nero decided to bring up the only relevant topic.

"So, the Six Shadows. At least it sounds badass," said Nero.

It took a few seconds for the words to come out of Ryder's mouth. "Yeah... Yeah it does. Hey look. No one can know about Korvin."

Nero nodded then said, "I also think it goes without saying that Murdoch and Katie are a part of the Shadows. The others we will have to find for ourselves."

Two months had passed since the death of Korvin. Ryder focused back in on his training exercises. He was training his lightsaber forms, knowing all forms and mastered forms one, two, three, and five. He worked on his Force abilities, his Sharingan, and jutsu that he found out that he could now use.

Ryder was challenged to a series of duals in the Council's academy's training arena. Something where other student could challenge him to prove how far they had progressed. He had beaten one after another with no challenge. He was in a bad mood, so he was easily distracted at the moment. He was wearing his mask, black boots, loose black pants tucked into his boots, and a white long sleeve shirt.

His opponent was wielding two lightsabers compared to Ryder's one. It was easy practice for him. His own lightsaber skills had improved drastically with the awakening of his Sharingan.

Knowing the basics of chakra control, Ryder used his Force lightning to coat his lightsaber making it stronger. Within a few seconds, he had knocked the lightsaber out of his opponent's hands. Ryder proceeded to slightly move his mask to reveal a single eye. His Mangekyo Sharingan met his opponents gaze and was immediately placed under a genjutsu.

"What... what is this place," asked the victim.

"This is my genjutsu. I control this place and the time here. This is where you'll meet your end." Whatever Ryder wanted to happen, he could do that in this genjutsu. The great, Tsukuyomi.

Suddenly, a giant asteroid burst through the red clouds in the atmosphere.

"No!" yelled the victim as the heat of the comet intensified the air around him. It was slowly burning his skin. When the planet-like asteroid was close to collision, the Jedi felt blisters and severe burns all over his skin as his vision turned to black from contact.

Outside of the genjutsu, Ryder was standing next to the Jedi putting up his lightsaber. The opponent was standing still for a few seconds before he collapsed to his knees gasping for air until he passed out.

The Medics rushed the Jedi to the medic center right after. A voice came over a loud speaker, "That's what he gets for challenging an S-class opponent! If anyone else wishes to challenge the top mercenary please come forward. So far the record is 15 seconds!"

At first no one stepped forward to challenge Ryder, but a voice from the back sounded out loud, "This chump will be easy!"

Ryder turned around and saw a guy with short brown hair, jorts, tennis shoes, and a Hawaiian shirt walking towards him. "And who are you?" Ryder asked.

"Devoski. But call me Skibo," replied the challenger.

Ryder nodded and said, "Whenever you're ready, Skibo." He readied himself with just his hands up.

"No lightsabers I guess?" said Skibo.

"Can't be showing everyone all my tricks, now can I?" replied Ryder.

"Well that's fine with me," said Skibo. He bent his knees, brought his arms by his side and began powering up. Dust, dirt, and rocks began floating around him as his power began to exponentially increase.

"Your power level is now lower than mine. You were at 120,000, but I've surpassed you with 135,000!" yelled Skibo.

Throwing his hands out, Skibo began firing off chi blasts towards Ryder.

He jumped around dodging every single one until one grazed his foot and caused an explosion that blasted him into the wall. Using this opportunity, Skibo flew directly towards Ryder who was beginning to stand back up. Once Ryder got to his feet, he received a flurry of punches and kicks to the torso, arms, and the head. Skibo went for a punch that would hit Ryder on the bottom of his jaw, but instead, he did a quick front flip and slammed Ryder into the ground with his right heel.

Skibo jumped away and regained his breath. Slowly, Ryder stood back up and adjusted his mask. "You might want to start using those lightsabers chief," mocked Skibo.

Ryder laughed and said, "Don't go around getting too cocky. I just wanted to see what you had in store for me."

Ryder formed a hand sign and a clone appeared next to him. Casually, it began walking closer to Skibo at a slow pace. Annoyed, Skibo sent a chi blast towards it, but it flipped and dodged the attack. He went in for the punch to destroy it, but right when Skibo made contact, the clone exploded sending Skibo a few yards back.

"Fire style: Piercing hell strike!"

A spear made of fire and about five feet in length shot out of Ryder's mouth and headed straight towards Skibo at alarming speeds.

"If this connects, it will all be over!" yelled the voice from the speaker.

Skibo was standing there waiting for the spear. He lifted his palm towards it and right before it made contact, he yelled out, "Full Counter!" The spear instantly changed direction and flew back towards Ryder bigger and faster than before.

"What the fu—" said Ryder right before the spear hit him. The collision caused a large explosion of fire and dust.

"It looks like the match is over, folks!" yelled the announcer. "Somehow, Skibo was able to reverse Ryder's jutsu!"

Ryder looked unconscious in the wall, and Skibo didn't even look tired from redirecting Ryder's attack.

"Do you give up!" yelled Skibo.

Ryder didn't respond. Instead his body fell and landed on the ground.

Ryder twitched as his arm began supporting him and lifting himself up. His clothes were ripped, and his mask was scratched all over.

"I'll finished this with this last attack," announced Skibo as he looked annoyed from Ryder getting up.

He brought his palms together and in front of him. "Ka-meh" a blue ball of light appeared in his palms as he brought them to his hip. "Ha-meh" he gathered the last of his power into the blue ball. It shined a bright, pure blue. "Haaaaaaaa!" yelled Skibo.

Thrusting his palms out towards Ryder, a blue beam shot towards him at a blinding speed.

Ryder, about forty yards from Skibo, closed his eyes and widened his stance. He focused the Force into his hands and reached out his hands. The pressure from the attack was rising as it got closer and closer. After strengthening his hands with the Force, the Kamehameha wave rammed into his hands and stopped dead in its tracks. Ryder had caught it in his hands, but the force of it was so strong that it continued to push him back inch by inch.

_Do you need my help?_

"No. If this guy beats me then he beats me. But, I wanna try to deflect this using the Force," replied Ryder to Anakin within him.

_I know an easier way for you to do this._

This time, Ryder ignored the inside voice.

Ryder smiled at the challenge and activated his three-tome Sharingan. The force of the attack was still moving Ryder backwards, until the tomes in his eyes spun into a new design, the Mangekyo. Ryder's feet suddenly stopped moving backwards as he was holding his own against the chi wave. With a deep red hue coming from the clear bar on Ryder's mask, an orange-red haze began to surround him and sure enough, with one thrust, Ryder threw the chi wave into the shield protecting the ceiling.

"Wh... What?! How'd you do that!"

Slowly, the dark orange red haze disappeared, and Ryder just walked slowly towards him. Skibo gritted his teeth and shot dozens of yellow chi blasts at Ryder. One hit the ground made an explosion that threw dust and smoke into the air. Skibo was getting tired at this point. The Kamehameha wave wiped out most of his energy, and he was running low in his reserves.

The dust began to settle as everyone could seen the yellow balls of chi frozen in front of Ryder, who's hand was stretched out. In front of him was at least three dozen chi blasts suspended in the air.

"What was it you said? That's right... Full Counter." Ryder smirked and shot all the chi blasts back at Skibo in an instant. The multiple that hit him sent Skibo into the wall behind him.

Rat, Tiger, Dog, Snake, Dragon. Ryder wove these signs and said, "Gale Style: Laser Circus."

He leaned forward and held his right wrist as black lightning began crackling through his right hand. Ryder began to stand up, being able to control the chakra coursing through his hand.

The white sleeve on his right arm was torn to shreds from the vicious black lightning. On the other end, Skibo had slowly gotten to his feet. He needed to survive or dodge this attack to stay in the fight, but time was running out.

Ryder clenched both hands together in front of him causing multiple lasers of lightning to shoot out and towards Skibo.

'Trump card,' Skibo thought. He placed two fingers on his forehead.

The explosion against the wall threw dust into the air. Ryder looked over at the referee and asked, "Is it over yet?"

Suddenly, Skibo appeared behind Ryder with another Kamehameha fully powered up. "No, it isn't!" he yelled. "Ha!" He extended his arms out and pushed the chi wave as hard as he could towards Ryder. The beam hit Ryder right in the side and kept going to the wall far behind them. The Kamehameha was going through Ryder, and he turned his head to Skibo. The corner of his mouth curved up.

Ryder's body turned black as about a dozen ravens took his place and flew away from the Kamehameha wave. "What the hell?" asked Skibo to himself.

The training room faded from his vision as a red lake, black sky, red moon, and red pasture appeared instead. One after another, large stakes appeared in his body, keeping him completely still.

The pain was excruciating.

Skibo looked around him and saw other versions of himself being tortured the same way. It looked like someone had driven seven-foot nails into him. He could feel all their pain too. A flock of ravens flew overhead and phased together forming a man.

"This is my genjutsu. Challenge me again, and I'll do the same but a lot worse." The man burst into a flock of ravens once again, but the red skies didn't follow after him.

Skibo collapsed to the ground gasping for air as he cradled himself. He could still feel all the pain from the nails that were driven through him. The referee waited a few seconds and then said. "And that's the match! Winner: Ryder!"

Ryder walked over to Skibo and helped him up. "You know you're pretty good. Had to go a lot harder with you than the others."

Skibo's body was in so much pain that he couldn't say anything in return. His muscles quivered as they tried to push Skibo to stand up.

"Three days of that kind of torture is enough to make a normal man never speak again. You're strong," Ryder said throwing the limp arm of Skibo around his shoulder.

Ryder and Skibo made their way out of the training grounds together and walked towards a table in a corner. Three people were sitting there but shadows covered their faces. Ryder placed Skibo in a chair near the table.

"Hey, dummy!" yelled out Murdoch. "Why were you just standing there during the fight. You did that then collapsed; you must be weak."

Skibo sneered and said, "I should kill you for keeping me in there for three days, but obviously, I can't."

Ryder laughed. "Would you like to?"

Skibo replied and said, "What do you mean?"

"Do you want to be strong enough to beat me in a fight?" asked Ryder.

Skibo stopped and began to think. "Of course," Skibo paused. "I'm gonna have to if I'm gonna be the strongest warrior ever."

Ryder smiled. "I want you to join the Shadows. We need a guy like you. A Saiyan that can counter any special attack."

Skibo noticed the serious expression on Ryder's face. 'So, he was able to deduce that I can only counter SPECIAL attacks. He must've picked that up cause I never countered punches or anything like that,' he thought.

"You aren't joking about this? I heard y'all already had 6 members," said Skibo. By this time, the whole academy knew about Ryder and his newly formed group that only answered to the council.

Ryder grinned and said, "Nope. We only have four. Well, five plus a droid, but we don't count him."

Skibo shook his head, "Well, if it'll get me out of this hell hole, count me in."

A grin flashed across Ryder's face as he turned and looked to the group. "Shadows," he paused and looked Skibo up and down. "Give a warm welcome to our newest member. The Shadow of the Balrog, Skibo."

The others clapped as they welcomed their newest member. "So, was this basically a try out?" asked Skibo.

"Don't blame us," said Murdoch. "It was all the captain's idea. Ryder said, 'He couldn't find someone strong enough.'" Murdoch was using his fingers to sarcastically emphasize what Ryder had said. "I'm Murdoch, too. The Shadow of Abaddon."

Katie raised her hand and said, "The Shadow of Tartarus, Katie."

Nero raised his hand next and said, "I'm Nero. The Shadow of Cthulhu."

Ryder turned face to face with Skibo and said, "And I'm the Captain of the Six Shadows, Ryder. The Shadow of the Typhon." After introducing himself, Ryder turned to Nero and began chatting about other fights that happened.

Skibo remain silent. 'Typhon,' he thought. 'I remember hearing about him. Said to be stronger than Kronos and Zeus. The most fearsome monster. Pure destruction, and the cause of agony for everyone it came in contact with.'

He looked Ryder up and down. Skibo could tell that Ryder was athletic, but there wasn't anything spectacular about his physic of presence.

As Ryder continued his conversation with Nero, he could feel Skibo studying him. With a quick turn of his head and a sharp glare, Ryder said to Skibo, "Why don't you come over here and chat with us?"

As if something possessed his body, Skibo rose from his seat and walked over to his new group. Ryder's pale blue, icy eyes froze Skibo as he walked to the nearest table.

_The final arc is on the way. This was another long chapter, but it set things up for future ones. Ryder will continue to build his team while trying to figure out his true role in the world. I tried to find fictional or mythical beings to name the "Shadows" and struggled a little with using 'Typhon' or 'Kronos' for Ryder. Thanks for reading, and as always; comment what you thought of the chapter and the story up until this point. Also, I'll be uploading once a week, maybe on a rare occasion, two times in a week. See ya next time!_

_ ~Aldon_


	25. Chapter 24: The Dragon King

**Chapter 24: The Dragon King**

It was around two in the afternoon and the skies were the usual blood red, orange, and yellow. The hallways at the camp were cold and emitted an eerie presence. Ziggy turned a corner and saw the doors to the war room. He walked inside and saw General Hall, Rodan, the Doctor, and President Reed sitting at a table. The most noticeable thing was that Doctor Rogers' white lab coat had small burn marks that seemed to be the result of a few of his tests. Ziggy sat down at the end of the table.

President Reed stood up and said, "We have a special mission for a few members of your crew. Since the US doesn't really have a home planet anymore, we MUST go out and find one with enough resources to support a rebellion."

A hologram of the galaxy appeared above the table. It zoomed into a planet on the outer edge of the galaxy.

"I want you to go to the planet, Kroth in the Ragnos Sector. Intel says that a temple resides in a Volcano that has been active for many decades. Recover what it holds and scope the surrounding planets for power sources and natural resources. This way, we can gain intel while searching for livable planets."

Ziggy looked at the President and asked, "What if we find hostiles?"

"Then you find out what they want, and you take it," said the President in an aggressive tone as he sat down in his chair and wiped the sweat from his forehead.

Sensei Rodan spoke out and said, "Gain intel on why they're there. Then decide if its worth your time to get it before they do. If it isn't let them be or get rid of them." Zakee nodded and stood up looking at President Reed.

"I'll grab my team and head to Kroth immediately," said Zakee eagerly.

The president stood up and said, "Report to me when you learn of anything."

Ziggy left the room; he already knew who was gonna be on his team. First, he needed someone powerful that was good from long range. The immediate thought of a guy flying around appeared in his mind. The next crewmate was of course the strategist, Clayton. The final two were two that had chemistry with his team, Sarah and Jake.

He sent out a group message that told them to meet at the Ebon Hawk in the hanger immediately. Within five minutes, Clayton, Jackson, Sarah, and Jake were in the main hold of the Ebon Hawk.

"What's this all about?" asked Jake.

Ziggy leaned towards the group and said, "We have a mission." The ears of the others tilted towards Zakee.

"The five of us go to Kroth in the Ragnos sector and survey the surrounding planets for resources. Power and natural resources. However, there's a temple in a volcano on Kroth that could have some pretty cool stuff too."

Clayton stood up and walked to the exit of the ship and said, "Was there even a point in asking me to come here? Of course, I'm going. I'll be back soon with all my stuff." He walked off the ship and through the exit of the hanger.

Jackson looked at Sarah and Jake who nodded at them then back at Ziggy. "Looks like we're coming too."

"That's perfect. We leave Solia tonight." Ziggy already had his things packed together. He was tired of this planet. So dull. He was actually a little jealous of Ryder for getting to do his own thing. Ziggy left the ship and went to go talk to Sensei Rodan.

The new base consisted of 772 students and officers in an old bunker on the side of a mountain. The ship, covered by trees, was parked in a valley at the bottom of the mountain. The hallways were old with metal walls, and some areas even had the rocks behind them exposed.

Ziggy was walking towards the war strategy room which was where Sensei Rodan was most likely. He opened the doors to the room, and his sensei stood at the back of the room in front of a giant window. Ziggy walked up to his side and gazed out into the fields and forests that surrounded the mountain.

"Ever since the attack, all of the students have been doing everything at 120% the effort," said Sensei Rodan suddenly. "Shinigami practicing swordsmanship with ninjas, Jedi, and anyone who can wield a sword. They are getting experience in fighting a wide variety of powers. Many of them even practice against their own power's weakness in order to strengthen it that much. Through teamwork and determination, this small group of young students have had a dramatic leap in their own powers and athletic gains," said the Sensei staring at a small group of students practicing hand to hand combat in a field below.

Zakee looked up at his master and said, "They've gotten a lot stronger, but they must keep going."

"The enemy will have a larger army than us, so we have to have a better group of soldiers than them," said Rodan.

"That's right." Rodan gazed off into the sky. "They're no longer students. They are soldiers. Here. Fighting for their lives."

Zakee put his hand on Rodan's shoulder. "We will win this this war," he said. "If we take out their leader. All our friends that turned on us before will turn on them since they only left 'cause they were scared. Once that happens and they're so distracted, we will destroy that empire!"

Rodan let out a breath and said, "I hope that you're right." He turned to Zakee like a remembered something important. "But now I have something for you."

Rodan walked over to a bookshelf and scanned the spines of the books. Many of their them were worn out leather or cloth.

After mumbling for a few seconds, he pulled out a book and dusted off the cover. "I do believe I made you a promise." He handed Zakke a book that didn't have a picture or title on the cover page.

Ziggy opened the book to the first page and read, "The Dragon Claw Technique focuses on holding one's fingers in a claw-like fashion, crushing the adversaries with a powerful grip." Zakee looked up in shock. "No way, you're gonna teach me?!"

Rodan's face went from smiling to very serious. "This is a difficult and powerful technique. Once you understand the basics, you can develop the basics into powerful attacks."

Zakee nodded.

"Meet me at the very top of the mountain after you change into some clothes that you won't need in the future. Get ready." Rodan turned back to the window with his wrist clenched behind his back.

Zakee turned and left the room. As he walked, he kept reading the book, "The user can imbue his 'claws' with Color of Arms Haki, increasing the potent deadliness, being able to crush even a giant's steel helmet and causing incredible damage to said giant's head."

Zakee shook his head and said, "Damn. I don't even know what Haki is though."

He took a right down a hall and came to a stairwell. He went down six flights and opened the door.

It was the hanger.

He went into the Ebon Hawk and grabbed his training clothes. He grabbed his white training shorts, kunai pouch, and dark blue short-sleeve hoodie and put them on. He grabbed the book again and went outside. He looked up the side of the mountain and began jumping to the top.

Rodan was on the top of the mountain looking into the sky. The sound of rocks falling came from behind him. "Took you a little longer than I expected, especially if you think that you're ready to learn this technique."

Zakee stood up tall. The white shorts, wrist wrap, and blue hoodie made his face seem more serious than normal. "I'm ready," Ziggy said with conviction.

Jackson, Clayton, Sarah, and Jake were sitting in the main hold of the Ebon Hawk. "Where the hell is he," said Jackson as he put his hands behind his head and leaned back.

"We've been waiting for an extra two hours. We should be gone by now."

Just as he finished saying that, the sound of feet walking up the ramp reached them. Zakee walked around the corner looking completely different from the beginning of his training. Half of his shirt was practically gone; his shorts had burns and holes in them, and soot and dirt covered him from head to toe.

"What the fuck happened to you," asked Clayton.

"Just some last-minute training," he said as his body sluggishly walked to his room.

"Jake, go ahead and fly us to Kroth."

The four of them looked at each other and Sarah broke the silence saying, "Well get to it, Jake. I'm gonna go rest too." She stood up and walked to her room as Jake walked to the cockpit.

"Well," said Clayton turning to his Saiyan friend. "Wanna do some training with me?"

Jackson shrugged and followed Clayton to the training room.

Three days had past and they had finally arrived. Zakee, Clayton, and Jackson were in the cockpit. Looking through their window, they saw a planet was red and had swirling patterns on the surface that looked like storms.

"Do y'all feel that?" asked Jackson.

Ziggy and Clayton looked confused and said, "No?"

Jackson rubbed his head and said, "I've got a bad feeling about this."

Quick with a smile, Zakee said, "We have a solid team. There is nothing to be worried about."

The Ebon Hawk zoomed down to the surface of Kroth. Volcanos lined the horizon as streams and lakes of lava filled the rocky land. A large volcano appeared in the distance. It seemed like it was as tall as Mount Everest.

The hair in Jackson's arms stood up. "I feel a really strong power coming from there." He pointed to the volcano and said, "Looks like that's where we're going."

The ship landed next to the base of the volcano. "R2, stay here with the ship and get out of reach from enemy scanners just in case this thing blows up." R2 beeped to let Ziggy know that it understands it's orders.

"Okay then, let's go."

The five of them walked down the ramp and stood at the bottom of the volcano.

At the top of the volcano, two figures stood on the edge looking down into the lava. "It's almost time, and it seems like we have some visitors," said one with his arms stretched over the lava.

"They won't be any trouble for us though," the other figure said.

The first figure began mumbling words as his hands began to glow.

Ziggy's crew was running up the side of the volcano when it began to shake.

"No way," said Sarah as her Blaziken. "It's not erupting on us already, is it?"

Clayton squatted down and placed his palm on the volcano. He looked up at Sarah and said, "No. It feels like some sort of attack." A loud whistle suddenly came from no where.

"What is that?" asked Jake. Ziggy looked to the left and right but didn't see anything. "It's coming from above!" yelled Jake

A flaming boulder was falling right towards them. The five scattered and evaded the falling rock and the explosion that occurred shortly afterword.

'It must be coming from the top,' thought Ziggy.

"Let's hurry up and get up there!" yelled Ziggy to the others. They all began sprinting to the top. Jackson was flying; Ziggy, Clayton, and Jake were running, and Sarah was parkouring as her Blaziken.

A few minutes later, Ziggy jumped over the last ledge that kept him from the top and landed on the top of the volcano. One by one the rest of the crew reached the top. Close to the edge where you would fall into lava stood two people. One had on a yellow jacket and the other had on black pants, black dress shoes, and a white button down with his sleeves rolled up. The one in the yellow jacket turned to face Zakee and his crew.

"Colby, is that you," asked Sarah as she walked to the front.

"Hey guys," Colby said in a cheerful voice. "What's up? Wasn't really expecting y'all right now."

The crew looked at each other all thinking that seeing Colby here was suspicious. "What're you doing here?" asked Zakee.

Colby's demeanor changed. His grin went crooked. He had a soft, maniacal laugh. "Well isn't it obvious," he said as he stroked his chin with his hand. "We need to catch this Pokémon here to obtain its power!"

He threw up his arms, and the ground began to shake again, but this time, a giant claw grabbed the ledge of the volcano. A large Pokémon that had red armor and black skin beneath appeared. This giant reptile looked like an ancient, mythical dinosaur.

The other man that was with Colby raised his arms and said, "Finally! I am the one that woke you, Groudon! Be mine and we will rule the galaxy!" After a quick glance that Groudon gave the mysterious man, it let out a roar that shook the ground.

Zakee felt the ground slowly become hotter and hotter.

"Watch out everyone; something's coming from the ground." The ground began to glow orange as geysers of lava erupted all around the volcano. Jackson flew into the air and dodged one column of lava. Clayton and Zakee used Jutsu to get them out of the way while Sarah teleported her and Jake to another spot with her Kadabra.

"We need to be serious with our attacks. They're strong," said Colby to his partner as he grabbed a kunai from his back pouch.

His partner grinned as he pulled out three poke balls.

Colby performed five hand signs and said, "Shadow Style: Feather Spew!" He crossed his arms in front of his chest in an "x" form. He focused chakra to the underside of his arms and then forcefully opened them, sending a barrage of shadowy, razor-sharp feathers at Zakee's group.

Ziggy dove and dodged along with his teammates.

Jackson took this opportunity to fly right towards Colby, ready to engage in a fist fight. He came in with a swift heel kick to Colby's head, but Colby easily blocked it with his arms and a smile.

"Is that all you've got?" he mocked cooly.

Jackson began his combo, but once again, each punch, jab, and kick was blocked. Right when Jackson got too ambitious. He threw a punch that was grabbed by Colby who then countered by throwing Jackson into the side of a rock.

"Go, Blaziken, Jolteon, and Froakie," yelled Sarah from the side.

"A Pokémon trainer. This will be interesting," said the unknown man.

Ziggy glanced at Sarah who was in attack position. Clayton was right next to her.

"Okay then, Fire Style: Searing Migraine!" Clayton formed three hand signs then released a storm of fire from his mouth that enveloped Colby and his partner. Suddenly the fire dispersed because of a sudden shock wave. Standing next to Dan and Colby, who only had a few burn marks on their clothes, were an Machamp, Charizard, and a Feraligator.

Sarah took a step back and said, "No way. Three all-time greats."

"That's right!" yelled out Colby's partner. "You're finished."

Feraligator and Charizard opened their mouth and released a Hyper Beam and Flamethrower that fused together. Ziggy took a step forward while he told the others, "Y'all might want to get back a little bit."

He cracked his neck then said, "Dragon Claw Technique: Iron Claw of the Dragon!"

His fist burst into flames as an ominous aura came from them. He met the fused attack on with a punch that housed all his power. The punch was strong enough that it redirected the Hyper Beam up into the sky.

A feint attack!

Machamp was right next to Ziggy by the time he punched the blast. It raised it's fists and then slammed them down on Ziggy.

As if Ziggy knew exactly what Machamp was going to do, he planted his foot, pivoted, then caught Machamp's hands using the Dragon Claw technique. Realizing that his hand was grabbed, Machamp quickly got away and retreated.

The Charizard walked forward and released an unexpected Blast Burn and smokescreen that sent fire and smoke everywhere.

"Hey! Let go of me," yelled Ziggy from somewhere in the smoke.

Jackson looked around to see if he could see Ziggy. "Zakee! Can you hear me?!"

The sound of his other teammates screaming out Ziggy's name filled his ears, but Ziggy's cries for help were not heard.

Suddenly, a blue dragon flew straight up from the smoke then b-lined towards a mountain range in the distance.

"What the fuck just happened," said Jackson. "We needed him for this battle." Clayton turned to Jackson and said, "Don't worry. Even though he's gone, I've got a plan."

Colby glared at his partner. "Dan, the hell did you do that for?"

Dan looked completely lost. "I have no clue why my Garchomp did that. I didn't even send him into battle. He broke out of his own ball. He must've been under a genjutsu or something." Dan looked back at the other three. "Anyways, who's next?"

The three were standing in a triangle. Jackson was in the front and Sarah and Clayton were in the back.

Jackson began to fire off small yellow balls of chi at both Dan and Colby. Dan dodged towards the opening of the volcano, and Colby dodged to the edge of the volcano. Jackson and Jake kept fired after Colby.

Clayton had made three shadow clones, and they were throwing kunai at Dan. Blaziken was using Flamethrower and Jolteon was charging his electricity for an attack. Froakie was next to Jolteon throwing water shurikens at Dan.

Dan landed and coated his forearms and hand with a dark coating that looked like black steel. He jumped and punched at Clayton who quickly created a mud wall Jutsu to put a barrier between the two, but the armament on Dan's arms were strong enough to bust through the wall.

Dan swung his legs towards Clayton's head while still in the air, but was too slow because Clayton ducked and jumped back to gain ground.

Colby started forming hand signs and said, "Chidori." Small bolts and crackles of lightning coated his hand. it sounded like a thousand birds singing different songs.

"Why're you doing all this, Colby?!" yelled Jackson.

Colby and his chidori were racing towards Jackson. In an instant Colby disappeared then reappeared behind Jackson and thrusted his chidori at Jackson's heart.

However, Jackson could sense the attack, so right when Colby attacked Jackson's chest, he side stepped and blasted Colby at point-blank range with a chi blast.

The explosion faded, and Colby was left on the ground slow to get up.

*POOF*

'A shadow clone,' thought Jackson as he saw a small white cloud take Colby's place. He immediately felt Colby's presence right above him, but before he could react, Colby's heel slammed down onto Jackson's head.

The force of the kick was so powerful that Jackson hit the ground and immediately bounced about two feet off the ground. While suspended in mid-air, Colby round-house kicked him into a nearby boulder.

Clayton snapped at Jackson and said, "Jackson, stop fooling around. We've got to beat them or escape!"

Slowly, Jackson stood up from the ruble of the boulder and cracked his neck. "Alright. Let's do this." Jackson spread his legs apart and flexed his arms by his side. Veins emerged from his biceps and neck as a white energy began to grow larger around him. Rocks began to float next to him from the mere pressure of his increasing power.

With Jackson distracting their opponents, Clayton quickly did six hand signs, slammed his hand onto the ground and yelled, "Forbidden Technique: Earth Oven!"

Four walls made of dirt and rock erected around Dan and Colby while Clayton was riding one of the walls, and Jackson was flying above. Clayton quickly turned his head to Jackson then said, "Get ready. They might try to escape by flying or running up the walls."

The walls were at least ninety feet tall. Dan looked at Colby and said, "The floor is slowly heating up."

Colby looked up at Clayton and said, "He's trying to force us up to jump, then they'll attack us while in the air, or box us in down here with lava comes from the ground. He has us trapped. Smart kid."

Colby wove sign after sign then said, "Wind Style: Wind Dragon!" Air currents gathered above Colby and slowly formed the head and neck of a dragon.

Still with his hand on the ground Clayton smiled then jumped high into the air and yelled, "Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation!" A large stream of fire spewed from his mouth and rushed towards the wind dragon that Colby had just created. Since wind release powers up fire release, the fire expanded into a giant wave that stretched the entire width of the box. It engulfed everything that was in the earth box and scorched it right there.

Suddenly, Clayton and Jackson heard a soft chirp from up above. They look so and saw Dan and Colby hovering above them on a multicolored bird. Clayton said, "How did y'all get up there?"

Dan smiled and said, "My Braviary knows Extreme Speed. It took me and Colby in a blink of an eye through an opening that it saw."

Because it had been awakened and not yet put to rest by either a Pokémon out powering it or the sky god Pokémon putting it to rest, Groudon was angry to say the least. The lava Pokémon let out a loud roar to show that it was pissed off.

Quickly realizing what had to be done, Dan controlled his Braviary to few right above bird Pokémon flew above the pit and saw Sarah on the back of her Blaziken throwing Pokeballs down at Groudon in the middle of the volcano.

"How and when the hell did she get down there!" yelled Colby. "That Pokémon belongs to us!"

Jackson grinned at his opponents. Clayton had transformed her into a shuriken, and one of his shadow clones into her when he summoned his other clones. During the short battle, Clayton threw the shuriken, really Sarah, at the mouth of the volcano.

Clayton looked over at the pit and yelled, "How's it going down there!"

A firm voice yelled back and said, "Just give me a little more time. It keeps swiping my balls away!"

Clayton and Jackson looked back at Colby and Dre and powered up for their second wave of attacks.

Everything he saw was blurry as a bright light shone in the upper right corner of his vision. His surroundings looked gray and brown. A few things started to become visible, and he began seeing colors. Most were dark colors like brown, gray, black, and blue.

Ziggy felt a soft mat underneath him as he rolled over. There was a small wooden table with four chairs in a corner, and next to him was another cot about the same size. The sheets were all messed up so someone had to be sleeping there.

The air there was thick and musky; it made breathing much more difficult. He heard a voice coming from the open door on the other side of the room.

"I hope he wakes up today, Mommy."

The voice sounded young and innocent.

"Well, I guess we'll have to see then." This voice was strong but it still had a soft feminine side to it.

Ziggy didn't feel a threat from them. A shadow of something foreign entered the room but what came after was more shocking.

It looked like a big lizard but it had leaves up and down his spine, and the end of its tail was a leaf too. Around its neck were two gold leaves that looked like a collar. Behind it was a yellow-bellied, orange lizard. Its orange tail had a small flame on the tip. Now the appearances startled Zakee.

He was sitting on his bed when they walked in, and when he saw them, Ziggy summoned a kunai from a seal on his forearm. The green lizard stepped in front of the orange one to protect him and spoke first saying, "We aren't enemies! We're here to help!"

Slowly, Ziggy lowered his kunai and asked, "Who are y'all?"

The green lizard set down the clothes in her leafy hands and said, "I'm Sliz, a Servine, and this is my son, Blaze. He's a Charmander. Here are some clothes for you." She pointed to the clothes on the ground.

"Where am I," asked Ziggy?

Sliz looked around the room and said, "You're in Mount Clement. The home of the great Dragon King."

Ziggy's eyes widened at the words dragon sage.'

He shook his head and said, "Dragon King?! That's right that Charizard grabbed me and took me here I guess. But why did he grab me?"

Sliz smiled and said, "Well _'I'_ don't know, but maybe he might. Get changed so we can go speak to him." She pointed to the clothes. "Change into those, then we'll go."

Ziggy put on the silk robes that were on the ground over the clothes he was already wearing. It was like a kimono.

"Come this way, please," said Sliz when Ziggy finished putting on the kamino.

Ziggy followed the two through the seemingly endless tunnels. They looked like a group just drilled through the rock to make the tunnels. The group finally came upon a large stone double door with two torches on each side.

Sliz looked at Ziggy and said "Go ahead. Open the doors."

Ziggy looked at Sliz then walked to the door. He placed his palms on the stone and dug his feet into the ground. He tried pushing the doors open but they didn't budge. He built up all his chakra and used his max strength. Ziggy could feel the doors slightly budge, but he knew that it wasn't enough to open them.

Sliz sighed and said, "Move aside."

Ziggy let go of the door and moved to the back of the group. Blaze waddled up to the doors and placed his small hands on the stone. As if he did it effortlessly, the doors gracefully opened and revealed a very large room with columns and a row of Dragons at the back side.

Sliz, Blaze, and Ziggy walked up to the dragons and knelt as a sign of respect.

Six dragons sat on thrones in a line with a young man in the middle sitting higher than the others.

"Dragon sages," said Sliz. "This human was brought here by Charizard. He said that the human used the Dragon Claw Technique."

The other dragons gasped and looked at each other, then to the man in the middle.

The man stood up and walked towards Ziggy. This man had red hair, a white scarf, and a blue tunic. He looked like he was about twenty. "I am Natsu Dragneel. What's your name," he said in a deep voice as some fire spewed out the sides.

"Zakee," he responded with his head lowered.

"Do you possess any power," asked the red hair man.

"Yes. I'm a ninja," Ziggy replied.

"Ahhhh. A ninja. Who taught you the Dragon Claw Technique?"

"My teacher, Sensei Rodan, taught me it a few days ago. "

"Only a few days ago," said Natsu as he paced in front of Ziggy. "You must have some potential if you learned it within a few days." He stopped pacing and turned to Zakee. "Show me your power."

Liz stood in disbelief as she watched Zakee stand up and ready himself. The other dragon sages leaned forward and watched intently.

Ziggy took off the silk robes and drew a kunai from his pouch. He took a deep breath then ran towards Natsu. He cocked his arm back and threw a punch, but in the middle of the punch, Ziggy disappeared.

Natsu smiled and lifted his right hand beside his face.

Ziggy suddenly appeared mid-kick where Natsu's hand already was. Ziggy tried kicking and punching again, but with every attack, Natsu countered and block them efficiently.

After taking a few hits, Ziggy leaped backwards and performed a combination of hand signs. He finished and put both hands out by his side. Suddenly, numerous ice spikes formed around Natsu, trapping him in place.

Ziggy took another kunai out and threw it at Natsu.

"Rasengan," he yelled as a blue ball of chakra formed in his right hand. With his left hand, he held up his index and middle finger and disappeared again.

Natsu looked around but didn't see him. Suddenly, there he was. Right in front of him with the blue ball at his chest. Natsu could feel the dense power from the attack, but didn't think anything of it.

With a flex of his chakra points, a flash of green chakra and aura burst out of Natsu sending Ziggy back a few yards.

Zakee looked up at his opponent, who looked completely different. Natsu was engulfed with green chakra that gave him a horn on his forehead and wings. The skin around his eyes and nose turned black and black lines that resembled veins spread out from the black skin and across his face. His hair was standing up and now had a green hue. The sheer pressure of Natsu's chakra made Ziggy's knees tremble.

"You were hiding this power the whole time?" asked Ziggy.

"Of course, I'm not going to go all out from the beginning. You're like an insect to me know. I did say to power up and not attack too," said Natsu as he cracked his neck.

The other dragons sat on their thrones waiting to see what Natsu would do next. Sliz and Blaze were on their hands and knees because of Natsu's pressure.

"Do you understand now?" asked Natsu. "This is the ultimate power of the dragons, and only a few of us have mastered it."

It took most of Ziggy's strength just to wipe the sweat dripping down his forehead. When he took his hand away from his face, Natsu was nowhere in sight. Instinctively, he turned around, and Natsu was twenty yards away forming hand signs.

"Sage Art: Dragon Rush!"

The green chakra focused around Natsu's right arm and turned a darker green. He bolted towards Ziggy in a flash. He appeared in front of Ziggy and clothes-lined him in the neck. A bright light flashed upon contact, and dust flew into the air creating a cloud of dirt, dust, and rubble.

The dust and smoke settled, and Natsu was standing over Ziggy who was unconscious on the ground.

"You didn't have to kill him, you know," said a large three-headed, white dragon.

The green cloak of chakra disappeared from Natsu as he turned and walked towards his throne. He looked pissed off for some reason.

"He isn't dead," he said as he sat down on his throne. "Sliz, take him to the infirmary."

Blaze ran to Ziggy and threw him over his shoulder. Sliz led the two out of the room and the large stone doors shut behind them with a loud thud.

"What's got you in such a bad mood, Natsu?" asked a large black dragon. It's red eyes glared at their young leader.

After a few moments of silence, Natsu spoke out saying, "He quickly moved his hands to his neck then used the Dragon Claw Technique to absorb some of the blow. He would've died, but his quick thinking saved him."

The black dragon began laughing hysterically which made Natsu only more furious. "This boy, he's an interesting one," he said as he finished laughing.

Ziggy sat up in his bed and looked around. He was in a small room that had stone walls and a single window. A Servine walked around the corner and called out, "Hey, Blaze! He's awake!"

A Charmander quickly walked around the corner with a plate of food in his hands.

"We found out how humans like their meat, so I think they call this a steak," she said as Blaze put the plate on his lap. The steak was at least two inches thick and was cooked medium rare.

"It's great. Thank you both," he said taking in another bite of food.

"Good! You're gonna need all the strength you can get for your training," she said.

Ziggy took a bite and asked, "My what?"

"Master Natsu decided that you'll be able to train here for a while," said Blaze eagerly.

A roar sounded from far away.

Blaze looked at Ziggy and said, "Well, we have to go. See ya later!" The two turned the corner and left Ziggy's room. He looked down at his steak. It was nice and charred on the outside, but red on the inside. He felt as if this was somehow a warning directed towards him.

Ziggy finished his delicious steak and set his tray on a nearby counter top. He looked out the window as three large dragons flew overhead.

"Wow," he said to himself. "This is by far the coolest thing I've ever seen." He rolled back over and went to sleep.

Gray clouds filled the sky above his old high school. Girls in his grade had on tiaras to show that they were now the queens of the high school. The summer going into senior year sucked so far. It felt empty, just like the parking spot next to his car that remained vacant in honor of his best friend.

After the last day of junior year, Ryder's house blew up because of a gas leak, or that's what the TV said. However, Ziggy knew that something was wrong. First, he knew that Ryder's dad didn't have anything gas inside of the house; he was a very paranoid man along with being a drunk. Second, why was there a FBI squad at their house. No one in his family was involved in the government. Lastly, when he went to Ryder's house after the explosion, a neighbor frantically told him that he saw a spaceship suddenly appear in front of Ryder's house. Once he said that, a man in a black suit and sunglasses grabbed a hold of him and walked him away from Zakee saying that the man was old and senile.

These three reasons led Ziggy to joining the military after his senior year. He devoted his final year of high school to trying to figure out anything that happened on the day of the explosion, and to consider the different branches of the military as means to gain information. Since he was athletically gifted, Ziggy didn't worry about any of the boot camps that he had to attend, so he decided on joining the Marines.

About two months into being a marine, he overheard a group of fellow privates talk about a secret service team that comprised of marines, seals, and anyone else that could handle an intensely physical regimen. This group would be one of the highest ranking in the entire military. At that moment, Ziggy wanted in.

He walked up to one of the generals, saluted, and said, "Sir! May I have a word with you in private, Sir!"

The general looked at the others around him and shooed them away. "At ease, private. What's so important that you wish to interrupt my dinner time." The general cut pieces of his steak and began to eat them.

Remaining tall and upright, Ziggy said, "I overheard a conversation that mentioned forming a new, secret service. I'd like to try out for it."

The general put down his fork and looked up and down Zakee. "I've heard these talks too," he said. "However, no one has come here looking for any recruits. You're a great soldier, Ziggy, and I'd hate to lose you. However, I'll make sure that you're the first one to know whenever I'm told." The general picked up his fork and took a bite into his steak. "Now, get out of here and leave me be."

The general's tent turned to smoke and faded away.

Suddenly, Zakee found himself lined up with about one hundred other soldiers. Many of them were wearing different colors and types of camouflage that resembled their branch of the military. The commanding officer was reading names off a list: "Clayton, Dirath, Drexler, Jereen." After each name was called, that person would walk down the end of the line and into a bus that was just waiting to be filled.

"Alex, Liz, Tucker, and lastly, Zakee," finished the officer. Ziggy walked down the line and onto a bus. He sat behind a guy that looked the same age and asked him, "So, they're only going to get eight of us?"

Right after he said that, the officer stormed onboard the bus and yelled out to them, "Okay little girls. I hope you're ready to greet hell with open arms! You are currently being shipped to a training facility located on Area 51. There you will train and hone your skills in our newly developed special forces program. Get some sleep because you have a large day ahead of you all." The officer turned to the front of the bus, put the microphone down, and sat down in his seat getting ready to fall asleep.

The guy in front of Ziggy turned around and said, "I don't think the program is developed enough to allow any more soldiers into it."

He reached his hand out towards Ziggy and said, "I'm Clayton."

Ziggy smiled and shook his hand introducing himself too.

_Go check out my poll at my profile. I tried putting the link in this, but it wouldn't work. It will help me determine my focus for the final arc and beyond... Hope you liked the chapter!_

_ ~Aldon_


	26. Chapter 25: Class for Assassins

**Chapter 25: Class for Assassins**

Four months passed since Ryder accepted Skibo as their fifth member of the Seven Shadows. The Council of Anubis's academy was now located on the planet Koth, a planet in the upper right part of the galaxy. The large meteor belt between that planet and the multitude of others served as a good defense that also threw off power scanners.

Over the past few months, Ryder and Katie had developed a relationship that was frowned upon within the community that they are in. People were not there to develop love interests. First and foremost, they were soldiers in the midst of war. They were not allowed to be with people of the opposite gender after curfew; which was now ten thirty.

"Do you think we'll see them again?" asked Katie. She was laying on top of the Rouge Shadow next to Ryder looking out into the sky. The surface of the neighbor planet, Loki, was close enough that it seemed reachable by jumping.

"I hope so, Katie" he said. Ryder rolled over and faced her. "I should've never gotten involved with the Council of Anubis. All they do is use us. I thought that I'd be able to get information from them, but it seems like they always somehow weasel something out of me instead."

Katie faced him. Even though her messy hair was pulled up, a strand of hair fell in front of her face. Ryder pushed the hair behind her ear. She smiled and blushed.

"Once we get our seventh member," she said. "We'll be able to get away from here. For good."

She leaned in close to Ryder and put her hand on the side of his face. Ryder put his hand on her waist and pulled her close to himself and kissed her.

After a few seconds, they separated. "Whatever happens, just don't trust the Council," she said.

Ryder moved back in and kissed her one more time then said, "I won't. I have a plan on how to deal with them."

Sounds of metal hitting metal and ship engines being turned on came from the opening to the hanger.

Ryder sat up looking past the green field at the Council of Anubis's academy. "We need to head back. I have a class coming up." He stood up and walked towards the ladder.

Katie sat up and said, "Go easy on them today. They haven't gone through all that you have. They aren't as eager to fight."

Ryder turned to her and said, "It's to help them escape the Council. I have to make them strong enough to fight out of here. To fight if the Council sends someone after them." Ryder took a deep breath.

"I wish I didn't have to do this either, but it's for the best." Using the Force, Ryder pulled his white shirt to him then climbed down the ladder into the ship.

Katie sat up and sighed. "Always trying to help everyone but himself." She reached for her green top and put it on. Katie stood up and followed Ryder down into the ship.

The Rouge Shadow's engines turned on, and the ship lifted off the green field. The black ship took off towards the reddish, orange horizon towards the academy. The ship yard sat right outside a large hanger that was made for starship repairs. On its side was the entrance to a large complex that contained the student's lodging, gymnasium, training rooms, cafeteria, and classrooms. On the other side of the academy stood the training grounds. There was a field larger than twenty, square football fields, a street composed of houses, businesses, alleys, and a few tall buildings, and lastly, a large area of raised, earth pillars that looked like rocks stacked on top of each other.

The Rouge Shadow had its own landing spot next to the other starships. It landed and the loading ramp extended down to the ground. Ryder and Katie exited and walked down the ramp heading towards the side door of the academy.

Along the way, Blake, the landing area manager, met Ryder and Katie half way. "Where were you two just now," he demanded.

"I thought I saw some chakra signatures land near the fields," Ryder said.

"Interesting how no one else seemed to notice them," Blake clapped back.

Ryder flexed his three-tome Sharingan and explained, "No one else has these."

The answer seemed to satisfy and anger Blake because he walked away towards the other pilots scoffing at Ryder and Katie.

"We can't let him find out," said Katie with a worried face. "They'll send me on a suicide mission. You're too valuable"

Ryder smiled. "Don't worry. We'll have our sixth and seventh member soon. I have to go teach my class. Don't do anything too reckless while I'm gone." He waved goodbye and ran towards the door.

Katie sighed a deep breath then went to work on broken down ships.

The Council had met with Ryder about two weeks ago and told him that he was going to begin teaching for the academy. Since he excelled in stealth and the Force, they assigned him to teach their Jedi and the advance assassination classes. However, since awakening his sharingan, they decided to let him teach ninjas and about chakra as well since teaching is the best way to learn.

Ryder had told his students to meet him at the street training ground for their first day of class. He was appointed as the Jedi teacher, the instructor for advanced assassination classes, and the teacher on chakra control. His Jedi and ninja abilities made him sneaky and a powerful opponent.

The street training ground began with a large opening to the street. Ryder walked up to the front of the opening and saw twelve students aging from sixteen to at least twenty kneeling in a semi-circle.

Ryder walked up to his new students and said, "Listen up!"

The students turned around and faced their newest instructor.

"I'm Ryder Jace. A Jedi and a ninja. Also, your new assassination instructor. I recognize a few faces from my Jedi classes, but you knowing me won't get you far in this class."

Up front was three Jedi that were Ryder's Jedi classes.

"This class will teach you how to kill your target without being detected or noticed, and you will learn how to remain undetected after the assassination. The Council put you in this class because of your scores on academic and physical tests along with the little experience you have on missions. If there's one thing I know, it's that experience is everything when you're face to face with an enemy on the battlefield. You can learn all the techniques you want, but experience is the only thing that will keep you from getting cold feet. That's why each of you will hone your skills and talents here. Against one another and most importantly me." Ryder paused and glared at his students.

Ryder unzipped his black short-sleeve shirt to reveal his upper chest. Above his right peck was a three-inch scar.

"On one of my first missions, I was shot with a long-distance lightning attack that could have killed me."

He zipped up his shirt and continued, "I showed you that to let you know that there will be times when you fail, but that's when you bounce back stronger than before. It's that experience that teaches you what you should have done in that situation." Ryder paced back and forth looking at his students.

Many of them showed resolve and confidence that this was the class for them. A few were uncertain. Ryder could tell because they kept glancing at the others to see if they were wavering. They would also stare at the ground; a common sign of a lack in confidence.

Ryder continued. "I'm aware of the basics of each of your powers, and I know how to improve certain aspects of those powers. If you find yourself struggling, come and talk to me. I'll giving you a training regimen or book to study. I'm here to make you better, so take advantage of this opportunity. At the beginning, there will be a little fear. You will be a little shaky. Everyone experiences that. But, let me help you overcome those obstacles, so that you won't be scared when you're in a real fighting situation."

Ryder walked to the front and turned to the street. "This is your first exercise. One of you will be walking down the middle of the street trying to detect the assassin which will also be one of y'all. If the assassin shows that he even exists; the target has two options. First, he can run to the end of the street which is the safe zone. Second, he can then attack the assassin. In regards to running to the end, I will know if you actually sensed him, so don't go running because you got nervous. If the assassin succeeds in masking his presence, then the target fails. However, if this is the case, the assassin is then required to try and stealthily attack his target. This drill will help you conceal your presence and help you to react quickly in critical situations. Anyone that isn't taking part in the exercise will be walking around as citizens. They aren't allowed to talk to the target, but you can talk to each other and go in and out of the buildings and alleys. Are there any questions?" he asked.

A student named George raised his hand. "What is it?" asked Ryder.

"What happens if we fail," George asked?

"I'll let you know what to work on and then you try again in another week," explained Ryder. George sat down, and Ryder asked, "Anyone else?"

No one raised their hand, so Ryder said, "Alright. First up is: the assassin, George, and the target, Ryan."

The two stood up and walked to the front of the street.

"I'm going to put everyone except the assassin in a genjutsu so that he can hide." Ryder activated his Sharingan and cast everyone but George under a genjutsu. "

You can go and hide now. Yell when you're ready." George nodded and took off out into the streets.

Inside the genjutsu, the scenery was the exact same except everything had a red hue. There was even a giant red moon above them. The students were just talking to each other while Ryder was standing still forming a hand seal.

Outside the genjutsu, Ryder was tracking George's movements through the allies and buildings that lined the street. After a few minutes, George yelled to signal that he was ready, so Ryder released the genjutsu on everyone except the target, Ryan. The bystanders scattered throughout the street. When they finished, Ryder lifted the genjutsu off Ryan.

"George is hidden out in the street. If you make it to the other gate without getting 'killed,' you pass," explained Ryder.

Ryan nodded his head and began walking through the street. His lightsaber was by his side as he walked trying to sense George with the Force. Ryan was one of the three Jedi that was in Ryder's Jedi classes. The assassin, George, was a fire ninja.

Ryan walked down the middle of the street peering down the dark allies and into the windows of the buildings. Classmates past by him one by one.

He made it past the halfway point before Ryan noticed something strange. Ryan could have sworn that he had just walked by his best friend, Ross, not even thirty seconds ago, but now there were four of him up ahead scattered along the street.

"What the fuck is happening?" he asked to himself. Ryan checked the flow of the Force and noticed that it had completely stopped. "Shit, this is a genjutsu." He exerted a Force repulse that brought him back to reality, but the after effects made him sluggish.

The first thing he saw was George mid-air about to kick him in the head, so he ignited his training lightsaber and let George get impaled by it. Once the lightsaber touched George, he puffed into a cloud of smoke. Suddenly, George appeared by Ryan's side with a kunai at his neck and a hand with two fingers extended that was covered in fire at his back.

Ryder appeared in front of the two and announced, "That ends it!"

Ryan put up his kunai and extinguished the flames around his hand. Ryan turned off his lightsaber and put is back on his belt.

"That was a good first match. George, that was a good strategy. Having a faint for your bluff is a strategy used commonly in battle. Ryan, you did well, but you can't become complacent when you see a human that looks like your opponent. Always be expecting a clone. I'll also teach y'all more and more about genjutsus."

Ryan sat down pissed off at himself while George walked over to his friends proudly.

"Next up, Hunter and Andrew. Everyone but Hunter go out into the street and get ready." Ryder put Hunter under a genjutsu while the others left for the street.

Hunter looked seven-teen or eight-teen, had blonde hair, was about six-feet tall with an athletic body build, and had his wrists and forearms wrapped in white wraps. He was wearing a pair of black and red Adidas Crazy Explosive PrimeKnit 2017, navy blue sweatpants that stopped right past his knees, and a white tank top. Around his neck was a tattered, white scarf that moved with the wind.

Outside the genjutsu, Andrew gave the ready call, and so Ryder released the genjutsu on Hunter.

He seemed too calm for this exercise.

Hunter walked through the entrance and began his walk to the other end. His hands were in his pockets as he walked down the street with his eyes closes.

After watching him for a few minutes, Andrew became fed up with Hunter's cockiness. Using his extreme speed and the parasite on his hand, Andrew bolted from his alley and attacked in the blink of an eye.

Dust suddenly flew into the air from the speed. Once it settled, it showed Andrew frozen in place ten yards from Hunter. His eyes were black and had his hand stretched towards Andrew. The black scarf had stretched down and around Hunter's arm. The end of the scarf had formed a sharp point a few inches from Andrew's face.

"Well, good job Hunter. That was excellent," Ryder said complimenting Hunter as he approached the two. The scarf shrunk back to normal size, and his eyes went back to their original blue color. "Since that was over within a few minutes, Hunter, I want you to be the assassin this time, and since it's obvious that you have a talent for assassinations, I'll be the target."

Hunter's eyes widened with excitement. "Whatever you say, teacher. Use your Sharingan too if you want. You'll need it," he said with a smile.

Ryder laughed and said, "Now that would just be too unfair." He turned and left for the entrance of the street.

The other students scattered along the street while Hunter hid. Some were set up in the alleys and others were simply walking down the road. Hunter was on top of one of the roofs behind a chimney about a quarter of the way down the road. He flashed Ross a thumbs up, and Ross yelled out, "Ready!"

Ryder opened his eyes and stepped on the street. George had made clones of himself that were walking around the stores and sidewalks.

'I need to find a way to sense where he is,' thought Ryder.

"_Just let me know when you want me to help out," _said Anakin from within Ryder.

Ryder chuckled. "I'm not trying to destroy ALL their confidence, Lord Vader. Plus, I'm not about to give you free reigns to my body."

Hunter was peering out from the side of the chimney he was behind waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

Ryder was just walking down the street. Once he past the first alley, he wove a short series of hand seals.

Suddenly, a thick fog rolled onto the street and elevated to the rooftops.

"He's trying to make a break for the finish line under the cover of the fog," he said to himself.

He jumped from the roof he was on to the one next to it.

When he landed, a voice inside talked to him and said, "Did you realize that the rooftops are now black?"

Shocked and curious, Hunter said, "Activate."

Hunter's eyes went black, and a black line went down his arms and legs. "Let's see if we can confuse him," Hunter told the voice. He sunk down into the dark shadow and disappeared.

Ryder hadn't move from the spot where he cast his mist jutsu. "Hmmmm. He was on the roof over there, but now my Force Shadow can't locate him. It senses him in multiple places." A person would pop up twenty feet in front of him, then move to an alley on the left, then back to a rooftop within two seconds.

Ryder laughed to himself.

"You can't fool me like this," he yelled out to Hunter.

Suddenly, a scythe connected to a chain busted through the fog and flew right past Ryder's face. It would've gotten him if he hadn't had a kunai to help deflect its trajectory. The chain tightened and was pulled back through the fog.

Ryder threw a handful of kunai in the direction of where the attack came from, but he only heard the sound of metal on metal meaning that they were deflected. Ryder deactivated his Force Shadow and wove a new set of hand seals.

"Wind Style: Demon Gale!"

Ryder extended his palms and three consecutive forces of wind shot out from him. They were so strong that they dispersed all the fog that was around. However, Hunter was nowhere to be seen.

Hunter was behind one of the stores off the side of the road. "As expected from my teacher." He took a deep breath and wiped the sweat off his forehead. "I guess I should just go all out since the assassination attempt was a fail." He cut the tip of his thumb with his dagger and smeared his blood across the blade.

"Lucifer and Satan, hear me and accept my invitation to fight. Amplify my power and this weapon in exchange for my blood."

Hunter's dagger quickly became hot as the blade grew longer and longer. Black lines started to wrap around his arms and legs. A black line grew down from both sides of his forehead and two more growing up from each side of his jawline, forming the shape of a "V" beneath his eyes. His black scarf turned into what looked like a solid shadow that waved around his neck.

Standing up he said to himself, "Uncanny Sword." A reddish black aura began exploding out beneath him as black lightning began crackling around him.

Ryder turned his head towards the immense power that was coming from behind the store. He looked at his other students and yelled to them, "Everyone get back and make sure you are at a safe distance. Try and learn something from what you're about to see." Ryder faced in the direction of Hunter who was powering up. He ignited his red lightsaber and activated his three-tome Sharingan too.

In an instant, Hunter appeared in front of Ryder mid-swing. 'So, he activated his Sharingan. Easy,' thought Hunter.

Ryder's red lightsaber met Hunter's Uncanny Katana. The light of the lightsaber illuminated Hunter's face, and Ryder saw how his eyes were pitch black.

"Hunter, are you still there?" he asked concerned that the demon took over his body and soul entirely.

"Don't worry, they'll never take me over," he responded. Hunter swung his sword low then sliced upwards, but Ryder blocked and jumped backwards.

"Good," Ryder said with a smile.

He began weaving hand seals and said, "Fire Style: Hellfire Clap!" A circle of fire about two meters across formed in front of Ryder and went flying towards Hunter.

He jumped towards flaming circle spinning while parallel to the ground and went through in without receiving a single burn. Hunter landed a few feet from Ryder who was in a defensive stance.

With palm facing towards Ryder, Hunter let out a large electrical shock that extended to and past Ryder. Hit with the strong impact, Ryder slid back roughly ten yards thanks to blocking it with his lightsaber.

"Nice," Ryder said. He held up his pointer and middle finger then vanished.

Hunter frantically looked around but didn't see him. Suddenly a large power appeared behind and above him, Hunter quickly turned and held up his arms to block.

Ryder's leg came down with so much force that the asphalt beneath Hunter cracked. He threw Ryder off him and gathered soul and light energy into his palms then released consecutive soul blasts that looked identical to chi blasts except that these were blue instead of yellow. One of the blasts hit Ryder, and he fell to the ground staggering on his feet.

Quickly, a rope of solid shadow extended from Hunter's scarf and wrapped around a bamboozled Ryder. He tried to overpower the shadow, but it was too strong. "What the hell is this stuff?" asked Ryder in a struggle.

Hunter laughed and said, "It came from Satan's scarf. Since he's inside me, he gave me it for protection. It allows me to manipulate these solid shadows." He made the shadow squeeze even harder. "Now give up. I won this round 'teacher.'"

Ryder just glared at Hunter. The pain he felt from the shadow made him grimace.

"I don't know if you're in the position to tell me that you've won, Hunter," said Ryder with a grin.

Shocked and confused, Hunter immediately responded, "Do YOU see the situation that you're in?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Hunter found himself being wrapped and strangled by his own shadow.

"What is going on?" he asked to himself.

Hunter looked up at his opponent and teacher. The sun was shinning down behind Ryder, making the front side of his body completely black except for his eyes. His eyes. Those demonic eyes. They were crimson red; the three-tome Sharingan felt as if it was piercing his very soul.

"You have tremendous skill in almost every category, but you rely too much on your demons. You fell victim to my genjutsu very easily. I can teach you techniques to counter anything that you'll face on the battle field, but that's all up to you," Ryder told Hunter. "I am the First Shadow of Hell and you, Satan's vessel, did well standing up to the Shadow of Typhon."

The scenery around them changed. He was now sitting next to a black lake. The clouds in the sky were black, and the sky itself was red. The hills around them were black, and the moon was giant and red with the reflection of Ryder's new Sharingan on it. Ryder began floating about twenty feet above the lake.

"Come to me if you wish to become elite. Come to me if you wish to be stronger than anyone on the Council," he said as he put on the mask that his old master gave him.

"But for now, this match his mine." When Ryder finished speaking, he lifted his hands into the air and then flung them to the ground.

"Behold, the power of the man that will change the world as you know it." A pitch black, spherical rock the size of the moon, hell, it could have been the moon itself, broke through the clouds and began falling towards Hunter.

He looked up at his teacher who was staring back at him and said, "Are you trying to kill me?!" The black rock was getting closer and closer to him, and his teacher didn't move a single muscle. Instead, his body turned into a flock of ravens and flew away.

"Is this really how I die?" asked Hunter to himself as he closed his eyes and readied for impact. He could feel the earth and air heat up to point where he thought that he was being burned by fire. The pressure from the falling moon created an affect that made Hunter feel like boulders were already being stacked on top of him. Then, it happened. He felt the moon slowly crush him a millimeter at a time. It must've lasted for at least an hour before he passed out.

Hunter opened his eyes and was immediately blinded by bright LED lights.

"He's awake," someone said from a desk across the room. "Hold still, we don't need you passing out again." A nurse hurried over to his bed side and began using medical ninjutsu.

"You'll be healed enough so you can walk around, but beyond that, it's up to your own body." Hunter nodded and shut his eyes again.

A few minutes passed before the nurse spoke again, "You're all healed up. You should go a little bit easier next time training so your teacher doesn't have to carry you here again." She winked then walked away.

"How did I survive that moon?" Hunter asked himself.

"_It was another genjutsu_," said a deep voice from inside of him.

"I haven't heard that voice in a long time. What made you speak out, Satan?" Hunter asked.

Sounding like a pissed off grandpa, he said, "_I don't like getting beat. You were pathetic out there losing to a genjutsu by someone like him._"

"What do you mean 'someone like him?'" asked Hunter.

"_He's a demon through and through. I don't think he knows it yet, but he sure is one_," Satan said.

"Yeah, with those eyes and his power, he sure is," said Hunter. He waited for Satan to say something back, but all he heard was a scoff followed by silence.

Hunter slowly got out of his bed and put on his normal clothes and white scarf. He put his two daggers in his sheaths and began walking out of the room.

On the way out, the nurse yelled out to him and said, "Master Ryder wanted me to let you know that his offer is still on the table!"

Hunter waved his hand and said, "Thanks," then left.

Ryder's office wasn't far from the infirmary. It was down the hall then down one more hall next to the library.

On his door was a plaque that read, "The Seven Shadows." Shaking off his nervousness, Hunter knocked on the metal door.

"Is that him?" asked Katie, who was sitting on one of the couches that surrounded Ryder's desk.

"Yeah. It should be at least," Ryder closed the notebook that was on his desk and put it in one of his drawers. "Don't do anything," he paused and looked over at Nero. "Excessive."

Nero gave Ryder a thumb up and said, "Just bring him in already."

Ryder walked to the door and opened it. A blonde-haired eighteen-year-old with a white scarf walked through the door. He had a small sword and a dagger strapped to his back.

"Thanks for coming Hunter," said Ryder. "Please sit down," he said as he pointed towards a chair that was next to the two couches.

"Thanks," he said as he walked towards the chair. All the other shadows, who were either sitting on the couch or standing by it, stared at him while he sat in the chair.

"Will y'all chill out," Ryder said to the other shadows. "Anyways, everyone, this is Hunter. He's in my assassination classes and has top tier potential." Hunter looked at Ryder surprised. "He forced me to use my Tsukuyomi on him."

Hunter butted in and said, "I bet you could have beat me without it, though."

"That's not the point," Ryder replied. "Your speed and strength are incredible. It was hard for me even to keep up." Ryder walked to the spot in-between the chair and couch and separated Hunter to the shadows.

"Now, as you can see, I've gathered all the shadows here. I, of course, am Ryder Jace, the Shadow of Typhon. My right hand is Nero." A guy with white hair that wore black pants, shirt, and shoes with a white lab coat stood up and waved. "He is the Shadow of Cthulhu, pretty scary guy. Next is Murdoch, the Shadow of Abaddon. The Angel of Death on the battle field. Next is our mechanic and alchemist, Katie." A girl with a black crop-top, green bandana, and khaki capris stood up and waved.

"She's the Shadow of Tartarus. Doesn't look scary, but I'd hate to go against her when she's pissed off. And lastly, Skibo, the Shadow of the Balrog. He's our newest recruit, but don't let that fool you. As you can see, I've only named off five people. We haven't found our final two members, and we have an important mission coming up. We could really use the skills of an assassin."

Ryder looked at the other shadows then back at Hunter. "That's why I asked you to come here." Ryder walked to Hunter and reached out his hand and asked, "So, will you fill our sixth spot and join the Seven Shadows of Hell?"

Hunters eyes widened. He could feel beads of sweat rolling down the side of his head. 'Did it just get a lot hotter in here?' he thought.

"So?" asked Ryder again.

Hunter shook off his nervousness, stood up, and shook Ryder's hand saying, "It'd be an honor to join the Shadows."

Nero stood up and turned for the door.

"The ceremony isn't over yet. You know that, Nero," said Ryder.

Nero sat back down on the couch and said, "Then hurry up."

Ryder performed a combination of hand seals, and when he finished, a blue light with a few black flames came from the top of Ryder's fingers. "Seal of the Seven Shadows," he said as he touched Hunter's shoulder. Suddenly, the blue light seeped into Hunter's skin creating a black, three-headed dog that looked like a tattoo.

Ryder walked in front of Hunter and said, "Welcome, Shadow of Cerberus. The keeper of Hell." The other shadows that were behind Ryder came and pat Hunter on the back congratulating his acceptance.

"_That's cute. Named after my pet dog,"_ said Satan within Hunter.

"Okay, so we leave for the mission I was talking about in the morning. All you need is your weapons and a cloak that you can conceal yourself. Meet at the Rogue Shadow at six in the morning, and Hunter stay behind after this. That'll be all for now, everyone. You can go to rooms."

Everyone left the room and went to their room to get ready for the mission.

Ryder sat Hunter down on the couch as he sat down at his desk. "This mission is on Luminous in the Newk Belt. We're infiltrating a factory that produces weapons, droids, and cruiser ships. We have intel saying that a leader of ISIS will be there along with a few other high-ranking soldiers of theirs. The leader has super strength and invisibility, and his right hand can transform into one of Satan's forms. He can summon different armor that comes with a powerful weapon. Our mission is to kill these two people. We'll go over it in more detail tomorrow. Any questions?"

Hunter sat back and thought of some questions he might want to ask. "Who hired us?" he asked.

"The Resistance," Ryder said.

"Do we ever do work for ISIS?" asked Hunter.

"Sometimes, but they don't like hiring others to do their own work. In a way, you can think of this order as its own nation. Yes, we align more with ISIS in ideals, but we accept contracts from other nations too," explained Ryder. Hunter sat there and didn't say a word. "Okay, go ahead and go pack. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day for you."

Hunter nodded and said, "Got it, boss." He left and ran to his room to pack.

Ryder walked down a small hall in the back of the room and walked into his room. "Phew," Ryder sighed as he fell onto his bed. "One more guy."

Ryder reached into his nightstand and pulled out a small flip phone. He turned it on and went to the recent text messages. There was only one. It was from Clipper Fields.

Ryder clicked on it and it read, "Ithunzi? Two months. Operation Jericho. Operation Exodus needs to be underway before that happens."

Ryder took a deep breath and pressed reply and typed, "Roger. Omunye ushiye. Iqembu lezimpisi?" He pressed send and closed the phone.

Ryder wasn't worried about anyone hacking into the phone because it fed directly off his Force or chakra.

'Wow, only two more months before its time to roll. Better train more before then,' he thought.

The phone vibrated on his chest.

Ryder flipped it open and read the new message to himself in his head. "Lupus est draco iam. Senex discipulo sit vivere" The message ended there.

Ryder slowly placed the phone back in his nightstand and laid back down on his bed. "There's no way," he said to himself as he rolled over in his bed.

Ryder awoke to the sound of his alarm blaring in his ears. It was the classic alarm sound that made you want to kill everything when you hear it. It read "5:00 AM" and it sure did feel like it. Strangely, it felt cold this morning. It was usually warm inside the academy. Ryder put on his dark-blue pants and walked over to R2.

"Wake up, R2. We need to start going," he said after he patted the old astromech droid on the head. A series of light flashed on its head as it began starting up. Meanwhile, Ryder threw on his navy-blue shirt that was mesh around the upper chest then grabbed his light purple light shirt. This shirt had a high collar that zipped in the front; he left it unzipped showing his navy-blue undershirt.

*Beep woop zip zop*

"Yeah, just store my red one in there for now," said Ryder putting on his jacket. R2 picked up one of Ryder's lightsaber and stored it inside its own body.

"Go ahead and go to the ship and make sure everything is ready to go," said Ryder to his mechanic friend. R2 did as he was told and strolled off to the Rogue Shadow.

Ryder grabbed his old backpack from high school. It was a black North Face with neon green elastic strings on the front.

'Wow, it's been four years since high school,' he thought.

He also grabbed a small travel bag that he's had for a long time by now. Ryder put his khaki shorts, short-sleeve, blue shirt, black pants, black cloak, and collarless, light-purple short-sleeve shirt into his travel bag.

A few scrolls sat on his desk, and Ryder scrapped all them into his backpack. He opened one of the Force-locked drawers and pulled out his mask. He felt the Force pulse from it passionately. Ryder put it in his backpack.

Lastly, Ryder reached inside his nightstand and grabbed the old flip phone. He flipped it open and there weren't any new messages. Instantly, Ryder felt someone walking down the hall towards his room. This was one of the perks to the Force that he liked. Ryder was rarely surprised. He threw the phone into his bag and zipped it closed.

A knock came from the door then it opened. Standing there was an average height man in a white lab coat. He eyes were crimson red with the Sharingan. It was Doctor van Hoosier.

"What can I do for one of the Council members this morning?" Ryder asked throwing his backpack straps around his shoulders.

"I just wanted to clarify some details for the upcoming mission," the doctor said. "There are factories there that contain Titans who are working. If you find one that is covered in armor and seems to be a leader among them, subdue him and bring him back for us."

Ryder clipped his purple lightsaber to his belt and said, "Sure. What makes him so special?"

"The ability to cover oneself in a hardened shell is rare for a Titan, so he is exceptional among them. Intel says that he's there, so bring him back," finished the Doc.

Ryder saluted Dr. van Hoosier and said, "Got it, boss."

The old doctor scoffed and left the room.

"What a sour guy," Ryder said to himself as he locked up his room. "Seven Shadow: Ryder Jace," read the sign on his door. He took a deep breath then hurried to the hanger.

No one was out in the hallways except the students who love to train. No one seemed to mind him either which was nice because usually they stop him asking questions left and right.

He stopped at the hanger doors and placed his hand on the scanner. Within a second, the doors were opening to a barren hanger. The large force fields that separated the outside with the inside of the hanger were deactivated, and the Rogue Shadow was sitting right outside where the force fields had been. Ryder looked down at his watch and it read, "5:26 AM." Good, fifteen minutes until people show up.

He ran over to the ship and climbed up onto the top of it. On the side closest to the sunrise, Katie was lying there watching it slowly come up over the horizon. Ryder began to slowly walk closer to her in order to scare her.

"You know, you should be more gentle on the metal roofing if you want to scare me. I am an alchemist," she said turning her upper body around to Ryder, but he wasn't there. Where he should have been were three ravens. "Well never mind," she said as she turned to face the sunrise.

"Isn't it pretty," said a voice suddenly next to her.

"Holy shit," she shrieked as the sudden appearance of Ryder lying next to her startled her! "That was your best on yet, Ryder."

Ryder began laughing at her reaction.

"I'm gonna get you back," she insisted.

"Yeah right," he said as he put his arm around her shoulders. Katie leaned in laid her head on his arm and shoulder.

The bluish clouds contrasted fantastically with the red and orange blend of colors produced by the sun. "Do you think we'll ever stop this?" asked Katie.

"Fight, you mean?" asked Ryder. He felt her nod her head on his shoulder. "I sure hope so," he replied.

She lifted her head and looked Ryder in the eyes and said, "Then let's go find a place on a random planet where we can live. We could leave everything and not look back."

"Katie, I honestly wish that we could do that right now, but we will constantly be called upon and hunted down right now," he explained. Ryder looked back at the sunset and said, "Once we end this war, I promise, we'll do just that."

Katie laid her head back on Ryder's shoulder and stared out at the sunrise.

A few minutes passed before the doors to the hanger opened. Nero and Murdoch walked in with a small bag around each of their shoulders.

"I guarantee I could take you on in a fight," yelled Murdoch as he argued with Nero.

Katie and Ryder began laughing as the other two came up to the ship. "See, I bet Ryder and Katie will agree too, Nero. Hey Ryder, Katie. Don't ya think I could take Nero in a fight?" he asked.

"Sorry, buddy," said Ryder. "I think Nero has the edge on you, but just by a little bit."

"Ah fuck you," he said walking into the ship.

"How long have y'all been waiting on us," asked Nero.

"I've only been here for about ten minutes. And, I told y'all to be here at six anyways, so it's not like you're late," explained Ryder.

"You sound like someone who wished he could've had more time," teased Nero.

"Just go put your stuff up," Ryder laughed sarcastically.

After a few minutes, Skibo and Hunter walked into the hanger and into the Rogue Shadow where everyone else was.

"Hunter, your room is the third door on the right down that hall," Katie said as she pointed down a hall to the left of the cockpit.

"You're right across from me since we basically joined together," said Skibo. The two left to put their things away.

"Have you been on any missions yet?" Hunter asked Skibo.

"Yeah, we've done three missions in the four months that I've been with them," explained Skibo. "It's amazing how much real experience will help you; especially, when you're with these guys." The two threw their bag on their bed then walked back to the main hold where everyone was sitting on a three couches that surrounded a table.

"Okay," said Ryder standing up. He turned on the holograms for the table and the solar system appeared. He pressed on the hologram of a planet that was close to one of the two suns. The planet enlarged and showed mountain regions and a multitude of volcanoes on the surface.

Ryder pointed to a mountain range that had a massive volcano next to it and said, "This is Luminous. The location of the ISIS factories. Currently, titans and other people with powers power the factories. Our job is to kill the leader in charge of the factories and anyone else who oppose us. If we find a titan that has armor, we are to capture him and bring him back alive." The hologram of the planet disappeared.

"The leader's name is Denzel Colbert. He has the power of Sunshine and Invisibility. Sunshine means that he has incredible strength during that day and at high noon, he becomes nearly invincible, so we are going to attack at night. His right-hand man is Zero. He can use Takeover magic and Re-equip magic. When we get there, I want R2 and Katie to stay in the ship to provide air support or be reinforcements. Murdoch, you take Skibo and sweep through the factories. Try to liberate as many slaves as you can find. If y'all get into a predicament, send your signal."

Ryder turned to Nero and Hunter. "You two will be with me," he said. "We are going to scout the land in search for the armored titan and their leader, Denzel. Everyone, be ready to be called if we run into him. Once we finish with him, we are good to head back here. Are there any questions?" he asked.

No one said a word or raised their hand. "Good. Let's get going then, everyone. Nero and I will start with the flying, and we'll change up after that. Skibo, show Hunter around, and make sure he gets familiar with the training rooms."

"Got it," said Skibo. He turned to Hunter and said, "Follow me."

_Thanks for reading! Make sure you go check out the poll at my profile. It will help me out writing. Let me know what you thought in the comments!_

_ ~Aldon_


	27. Chapter 26: It's a Trap

**Chapter 26: It's a Trap **

The Rogue Shadow had been flying through space for four days, and they were about fifteen hours away from Luminous. Nero and Ryder were in the cockpit navigating when they heard a Katie yell from the back, "We've got company! Three starships heading right towards us!"

"Murdoch! Skibo! Man the guns! Katie, turn on the cloaking device and turn off anything that produces light," explained Ryder. He turned to Nero and said, "Turn off the engines and coast. Try and keep the same trajectory though."

"Got it," said Nero as he eased down on the throttle.

Katie ran into the cockpit and said, "Everything is off, but they are still headed our way."

"That's fine," Ryder said. "If they do engage, we can out maneuver them, and we have more firepower."

"Here they are. Why don't we gun them down if we have the firepower to do so?," asked Nero pointing in the direction of three lights in the distance ahead of them.

"Because if wherever they came from realizes that they have been destroyed, it can cause a lot of unwanted problems to this mission. Wait until they make the first move," said Ryder.

Ryder, Nero, and Katie stood still in the cockpit until they saw three more lights get closer to them a lot more quickly. Ryder turned to Katie and asked, "Are those missiles?"

Katie nodded and said, "Yeah, we might need to do something about those."

"Nero, dodge them, and I'll deal with the ships," said Ryder.

Ryder thrusted the throttle forward and dipped down. The missiles dipped down and followed them. The Rogue Shadow swiftly jolted back up to the point it was higher than the incoming ships. With the three missiles close on their tail, the Rogue Shadow was close to passing over the other ships.

"Murdoch! Skibo! Don't shoot at them!" yelled Ryder as he turned and faced the back of the ship.

Right before the Rogue Shadow passed over the other ships, Ryder brought his hands up to his chest then thrusted them down. Immediately, the three missiles were pushed down and rammed right into each of the ships blowing them up.

"Got them," said Ryder. Nero held up his hand wanting a high five, and Ryder smiled and slapped it.

Murdoch walked into the cockpit and said, "That was surprisingly easy."

Nero spoke out and said, "I think they were either automated or robots. That's the only reason why they were so easy to destroy."

"Okay. Well, go turn everything back on, Katie, and make sure nothing was damaged. Everyone else, get back to what you were doing," ordered Ryder.

Hunter was sitting inside the meditation room Indian style. A single candle lit in the corner of the room. Deep inside himself, Hunter was in a room talking to two dark figures on separate thrones.

One of the thrones was higher than the other, and the figure on it had piercing red eyes. The other had black eyes with yellow, snake-slit pupils.

"_If you release me completely, you'll have unsurpassable power_," said the figure on the taller throne. His red eyes pierced into Hunter like they were daggers.

"Just stop trying, Lucifer. There's no way I'm gonna let you do that. I'd practically die, and only my body would actually have that power," said Hunter.

"_If you think that I'm going to be caged inside a mere human, you're a fool. I am Lucifer. The bearer of light! The greatest of all the angels. King of power. You won't be able to hold back forever_," he said.

"_At least you have a choice_," said the other figure.

"_You did that to yourself, Satan. You shouldn't have stayed so mad at Michael_," explained Lucifer.

"_My bad for not thinking that those damn Archangels could turn me into a weapon. Then, we're told that humans will eventually be better than us?! What else am I supposed to do. I am wrath incarnate!_" replied Satan. Columns of fire busted through the ground around his throne.

"You wanna know something that could help y'all feel free?" asked Hunter.

"_I'm not gonna lend you more power, human. There's no human alive that's worthy of wielding my power_," replied Lucifer.

"Why are you so damn stubborn," asked Hunter in a pissed off tone.

Angrily standing up and a fierce fire appearing behind him, Lucifer said, "_I am a god! You should be enslaved to me not the other way around!_"

"Well you do know if I die, you get frozen back in the bottom circle of Hell. I know you don't like that place either," replied Hunter.

"_It's better than being here_," said Lucifer.

Hunter shook his head and disappeared back into his regular consciousness.

"_You know, he is right. That place sucks and you know it_," said Satan. "_I know you feel the same way. After all, we are practically the same person._"

"_The one thing I possess is my pride, and there is nothing that will tarnish that_," replied Lucifer.

"_Then why did you help him against Ryder?_" asked Satan.

"_Because I felt a demonic presence coming from him. It was those eyes. They're dangerous even for us_," explained Lucifer.

With his finger on his chin Satan said, "_Does that mean, if someone nearly kills him, then that person is actually destroying you as well since he's your vessel?"_

Lucifer glared at Satan and said, "_This is my room. Get the hell out of here, weapon_." He extended his hand towards Satan, pushing him into the darkness behind him.

"_Trying to get to my pride by using the human as something I should take pride in since I inhabit him. Pathetic_," said Lucifer.

Ryder opened his eyes and stared at the gray ceiling of his room.

'We should be close to Luminous by now,' he thought.

His stomach twisted inside him. He sat up on the side of his bed and began putting on his boots. "I've got a bad feeling about this," he mumbled to himself.

He got up and walked out of his room and down towards the main hold. Nero, Katie, and Murdoch were sitting on the couch talking to each other.

"I wonder if he still keeps in contact with them. I mean, he told the President that he would," said Murdoch to the other too.

They forgot that Ryder could hear extremely well when he is in tune with the Force. As he walked into the main hold he said to them, "Y'all will know soon enough." The others looked at each other with a confused look.

"So, how close are we?" asked Ryder.

"We've been orbiting the planet for a few hours now. We wanted you to finish resting before we actually start the mission," said Nero.

"Thanks," he responded. "What about Skibo and Hunter?"

"They're in the training rooms meditating," answered Katie.

Ryder nodded, walked into the cockpit, and looked at Luminous. Brownish red clouds covered a large part of it. The areas that had no clouds were brown from the dry mountains that inhabit the barren surface. He sat down in the captain's seat and said into the intercom, "Everyone, get ready for the descent onto Luminous."

Ryder gripped the throttle and pushed it down and began accelerating into the orbit. For a few seconds, all that was visible through the windows were the maroon clouds, but when they broke through the atmosphere, tall mountains and deserts cover the majority of the surface. No water was in sight. The sand was yellow and red, and that color transitioned to the base of the mountains that were brown up to the tip.

Nero, who was sitting next to reader, pulled up a map that showed a blinking red dot with a changing number next to it. "This is the factory and the number shows our distance from it. We should stay at least a mile away."

"Got it," replied Ryder. Nero glanced back at Katie who gave a worried expression towards Ryder.

"What's wrong?" she asked. "You've looked worried since you've woken up."

Ryder didn't say anything for a moment. "I don't know. To be honest, I just feel uneasy about something."

"It's probably just jitters. We all get them occasionally," said Katie rubbing his back.

"Yeah, I hope so," he responded.

The Rogue Shadow continued towards a mountain range that had a glow coming from its other side. Nero pointed to the strange glow and said, "That's it. This far should be good. Go ahead and land her."

Ryder gently lowered the ship to the ground.

Per usual, everyone met up in the main hold for the mission preview. All eyes were on Ryder.

'You've done this plenty of times, Ryder. Now is not the time to get butterflies,' he thought.

_Calm your mind. I can feel how rattled you are. It will only disrupt your objective._

Ryder took a deep breath and said in his head, "Stay out of this."

_Why do you shut me out? I've talked to you a few times, and you never want my help. Why did you even let me reside within you?_

"Okay. Remember, our objective is to assassinate the overlord of this mining facility. Intel says that he has immeasurable strength when it is close to noon. That's why we're attacking at now, at night. However, he also has titans and other powerful slaves working for him. Our mission isn't to free them, so DON'T get attached to them. That's what it means to be a Shadow of Hell. To handle business so that the Council doesn't look at us with suspicion."

Ryder looked around at all everyone. "This is how we are going to split up. I want Hunter and Nero with me. Our objective is to assassinate the overlord."

Ryder pointed at Katie and said, "Katie, I want you to stay in the ship, and if we call you in for your alchemy, be ready." Katie nodded at Ryder and went into the cockpit. Ryder's distress had affected her. She looked uneasy as she walked to the cockpit.

"Murdoch and Skibo," said Ryder. "You two will search the factories for the armored titan. If you run into any trouble, make sure you radio back to us."

Ryder looked at Katie. Their eyes met.

She opened the exit ramp and said, "Okay, good luck you guys." Everyone ran out onto the hard surface of Luminous except for Ryder.

Once everyone left the ship, Ryder walked up to Katie. Even though she was showing off her toned and curved body with her white sports bra, very short khaki shorts, and a red flannel tied around her waist, Ryder stared at her hazel eyes. They reminded him of the trees that lined the hills in Alabama. It brought him back to the smell of spring.

"Just be ready for me to call," he said.

"I always am," Katie responded.

Ryder placed his hand on her cheek and leaned in to kiss her, but she turned her face as he got close.

Katie broke free from his grip and walked to the pilot's seat. "Don't get yourself killed," she said dully.

Ryder sighed. "I'll be back before you know it," he said.

Walking down the exit ramp, Ryder looked back into the ship hoping to see Katie there wishing him safe travels, but she wasn't there.

The group began their journey into the mountains towards the ISIS factory.

They reached the base of the mountain range. They were brown and rocky. Very few vegetation lived on their sides. Layers of earth that were different shades of brown, red, and orange made up each of the mountains. In the middle, a narrow path made itself visible as the group gradually got closer to the mountains.

"Looks like this is it," said Nero to Ryder and the group. The two were at the front of the group leading them.

Ryder nodded and proceeded to walk to the path. Once they were on it, Ryder told the group, "If you know any abilities that hide your presence, use them now."

Ryder activated his Force camouflage and suppression then continued forward. Two hours passed until they came upon a makeshift gate that had two guys that looked around twenty standing guard. The gate was just two poles with a skull on top with a sign that read, "Stay out or die." They were talking about a girl they had seen earlier and how attractive she was.

"I swear man, she wasn't a titan," said the one on the left.

The one of the right quickly responded saying, "Good. Cause I'm not trying to have titan babies. That would get me killed."

Back at the group, Murdoch chuckled and said softly, "I can't believe that this is what they're talking about."

"Focus up," Ryder said. "I'm going to see if these are the only two around. If they are, we take them out."

He closed his eyes and focused on his shadow expanding out towards the factory and his sides for one-hundred meters. With his Force shadow, he could feel the presence of anyone that was inside his shadow.

Ryder turned to his original partners. "Nero and Murdoch. Take them out."

Within a few seconds, Murdoch had his Zanpakto through his target's chest, and Nero had pierced the other in the heart with his kagune. Ryder and the other rejoined the two.

"Okay. Up ahead, the path splits into two. Murdoch and Skibo will take the path to the left that leads to the factories, and the rest will go with me to the right. Any questions?"

No one said a word.

"Let's move out then," finalized Ryder.

Everyone followed him on the path. After a minute or so, the path split into two. Ryder, Nero, and Hunter took the right path, and Murdoch and Skibo took the other.

Skibo and Murdoch ran on that path for a few minutes before they came upon a large, steel, square building that had smoke coming from a chimney up top. Instead of a front door, there were two roll up, garage doors side by side that were already rolled up.

Inside, shadows danced on the wall as fire flickered and waved in the distance, but no sound could be heard from the inside.

Murdoch and Skibo slowly crept up to the factory and peeked in from the doors. They didn't see a single soul. Murdoch pointed inside with a finger and began walking forward with Skibo behind him.

The inside was not very big. It had stations for workers to work in. Some were sized for normal size humans, and others were sized for titans. There were offices and a fenced off area in one corner. The two made their way to the fenced off area. They looked down and their eyes immediately grew two sizes.

Inside the fenced off area was a large, deep pit. Down in the pit were conveyer belts with large weapon, ship, and droid parts. To top it all off, it wasn't other machines assembling them. A multitude of titans at least twelve feet tall were putting them together.

Ryder, Hunter, and Nero were running down their path and came upon what looked like an old, stone castle. It had three towers that were high enough to look out for miles.

"Zorg has to be in that castle," said Nero.

Ryder had his eyes closed trying to sense where Zorg was. The entire castle was surrounded by an ominous aura that felt heavy and cold. The aura came from the middle tower. It was strong, wild, and yet calm all at the same time.

Ryder opened his eyes with his Mangekyo Sharingan activated. "He's in the middle tower," he said with a confused look on his face.

Noticing that look, Nero asked him, "What's wrong?"

Ryder took a second before answering. "I didn't think that his aura would be so strong… or calm." He shook it off and said, "Anyways, we need to get closer to the castle."

Inside the middle tower of the castle, two dark figures sat at a table with cards in their hands. A single candle flickered in the middle of the table. In the corner of the room was another figure. The only difference was that this figure was curled up into the fetal position and was facing that corner.

"Khilor, did you feel that?" asked one of the figures.

Khilor smiled and said, "You know what to do, Slade."

Slade stood up and left the room. Khilor looked over at the other figure in the corner.

"You hear that, Blair? Looks like we have some company." Khilor stood up and walked to the window and said, "This is about to get real interesting."

Murdoch and Skibo jumped down into pit to where all the titans were working. The sudden appearance of them startled a few titans, and they ran away.

"Looks like these guys don't like quick movements," said Skibo.

"Hey, come back!" yelled Murdoch. However, the titans kept running.

He turned around and walked up to the few other titans that remained and asked, "Who made y'all do this?"

They did nothing and kept putting together the parts that they were assigned to do.

Suddenly, a titan screamed.

Then another. Soon, they were all screaming in unison.

"Can you cut that out!" yelled Skibo.

"Surely," said a voice out of nowhere.

A green light appeared deep inside the large area. It bolted to one titan than another. At each stop, he killed a titan that was screaming by slicing its head off with a katana or stabbing it through the chest or other vital areas.

Murdoch and Skibo quickly turn to face him. "What the hell was that for!" screamed out Murdoch.

The intruder was wearing a black robe with white undergarments. They looked like Murdoch's classic Shinigami robes. The most unsettling thing about his appearance was the green aura surrounding him. His skin complexion looked like it had a hint of red in it. Around his eyes were veins that protruded from his face, and his eyes were just white. They didn't have any pupils.

"Let me introduce myself," he said. "I'm Slade. One of the ten degrees of ISIS. And my job is to kill the two of you while my boss takes care of your friends up there." He pointed up out of the pit.

Skibo busted out saying, "But why did you just kill these titans! They're people too, and they didn't do anything wrong!"

In a flash of green light, Slade vanished then quickly reappeared behind Skibo and said, "Cause they're my slaves, and I can do what I want with them."

With a strong kick to Skibo's side, he sent him through one of the stone columns that was holding up the large area.

Murdoch quickly drew his sword and attacked Slade with a powerful swing, but Slade dodged, vanished, then reappear above Murdoch this time.

Grasping his hands together, he swung down right behind the head of Murdoch making his body slam face first into the ground.

Skibo had quickly recovered and was building up his chi. Right when Slade slammed Murdoch into the ground, Skibo sent at least a dozen small chi blast straight at Slade. Slade dodge each and every one of them, but Skibo noticed that he was starting to keep up with his speed. Even though each of them missed, every chi blast was closer to Slade than the last.

Murdoch stood up and said, "Fuck it. Let's go all out, Skibo. This guy is good."

He held out his sword in front of him, and it began to glow a bright yellow. "Scatter," he said. Starting at the tip of the sword, it slowly dissolved into a thousand pink petals until it got to the hilt.

Skibo finished powering up as chi was now bursting out from him making his hair stand up and clothes wave as if there was a powerful gust of wind hitting only him. It looked like a clearish white aura that took the shape of a flame surrounded him.

Quickly, Skibo dashed towards Slade who readied his defenses. Skibo planted his left foot and threw a hard punch with his right hand into Slade's stomach. The punch was so strong it sent a visible shock wave out of the back side of Slade. However, Slade used the palm of his hands to catch the punch to weaken the hit. Being caught off guard, Slade's legs were swept from beneath him, and he was kicked in the chest high into the air.

Waiting for Slade in the air were Murdoch's petals. They formed a giant fist and slammed Slade down into the ground. Upon hitting the ground, Skibo released a Big Bang attack. A blue sphere of chi rushed towards Slade, and upon impact, it exploded into a bigger sphere of destruction.

The smoke from the Big Bang Cannon cleared.

Murdoch and Skibo could see Slade slowly rise to his feet. Staggering a little, Slade lifted his head and stared at his two opponents. "That's not gonna cut it for me, boys," he said confidently.

Widening his stance and bending his knees, Slade clenched his fists and brought them up slightly. Drawing out more power, rocks and dirt began to swirl around him. His face began to strain again as his pupils vanished once more. "Fifth Gate: The Gate of Closing. Open!" he yelled.

A darker green aura exploded around him. "His power has drastically sky rocketed," Skibo informed Murdoch.

"Okay, stay on your toes," replied Murdoch.

Slade began weaving a few hand signs then yelled, "Light Style: Illuminating Mini Moon!"

He placed his palms on the rock floor. Suddenly, rocks began rising and smashing together at a single point forming a sphere. Once it got to about two meters in diameter, it stopped growing. Slade then thrusted his hands towards the spherical rock, and a beam of light shot straight at it from his palms.

The "Mini Moon" absorbed the light and produced its own light so bright that it made it impossible for Murdoch and Skibo to see.

Using this to his advantage, Slade dashed towards Murdoch and kicked him into the air. Moving so fast, Slade kicked and punched him multiple times while suspended in air. Finally, Slade moved in for one last punch in the face, but quickly changed to a punch in the gut.

Murdoch was sent straight to the ground, but before he could hit the ground, Slade yanked him back up into the sky with a wrist wrap that he had wrapped around Murdoch while attacking him in the air. With Murdoch coming back up into the sky, Slade kicked Murdoch with all his strength into the ground. The kick is so powerful that it left a large crater around Murdoch who was now unconscious on the ground. There were cuts all over him with some sort of black substance oozing from them.

Finally, the light of the Mini Moon died out. Skibo rubbed his eyes, and his vision slowly came back. Out of the corner of his eye, Skibo could see Murdoch lying on the ground unconscious. With a little energy left, Slade dashed towards Skibo who was ready to take on Slade.

Slade leaped and did a round-house kick on Skibo, but right before he made contact, Skibo yelled out, "Full Counter!"

Suddenly, Slade was blasted back into a wall with two times as much force that was in his kick. Slowly getting to his feet, Slade's green aura disappeared.

"This is getting fun," he muttered with a smile.

Slowly, his black pupils swirled into red pupils with a black iris and three black tomes around them. Then, they changed again into a design that looked like a black and red whirlpool.

"The Mangekyo," said Skibo under his breath.

"Time for you to experience the fear of death," said Slade. A yellow smoke gathered around him and formed what looked like a ribcage.

Skibo flew up to Slade and began throwing punches and kicks.

Right jab.

Left hook.

Right knee.

Left roundhouse.

After a few combinations, Skibo jumped back to assess the damage done. For some reason, he felt like he was attacking a steel wall, and just like if he was, he didn't afflict any damage to Slade.

Laughing, Slade said, "You can't win against my Susanoo!" As he said that, the yellow smoke took the form of the upper half of a skeleton then suddenly, it cladded itself in armor. Its helmet left one of its eyes exposed to show off Slade's Sharingan.

Skibo had heard stories about Susanoos and how they were an ultimate defense. He could only think of one thing that would be able to beat that behemoth.

Skibo created more space between him and Slade by flying back further. He began to power up his chi. "Get ready, Slade! This is my final attack!"

"Done so soon?!" he yelled back. "I was just getting started!"

"Ahhhhhhhhhhh!" yelled Skibo coming close to his maximum power.

"What's this?" questioned Slade. He was staring at Skibo as he was powering up, but his hair began flickering gold then back to brown.

"Haaaa!" Skibo jumped up and kicked towards Slade while he was still far away. Instead of a whiff, chi in the shape of a crescent moon was sent towards Slade. The attack collided with the Susanoo and caused a cloud of dust to rise. Skibo immediately did two more kicks then extended his arms to his side.

"Final!" he yelled raising his chi. He brought the bottom of his palms together and aimed at Slade.

"Flash!"

A thick beam of golden chi shot from his palms and collided with Slade. Skibo was planning on keeping his attack going until he no longer had any chi left.

Slade was taking the brunt of the attack inside his Susanoo. His feet were dug into the ground, and his arms were extended to help support the Susanoo and fend off the Final Flash.

The yellow armor of the Susanoo began cracking.

"Where did all this strength come from?" Slade muttered to himself. "No worries. I still have my trump card."

Skibo was almost out of chi, but he knew he couldn't stop. He looked over at Murdoch and saw him lying on the ground covered in blood and some black liquid.

"What the fuck is that?" he muttered.

As he looked back at Slade, he noticed how the Susanoo's Sharingan was flexed and was bigger than before.

Suddenly, the Susanoo burst into smoke, and Slade was gone. Skibo began looking around him frantically, "Where the hell are you?!" All he heard was a laugh all around him.

Twenty meters in front of him, smoke began to pile together and formed a humanoid figure. Color began appearing, and Slade appeared where there was once only smoke.

"Congratulations on falling under the powerful genjutsu of the Sharingan," Slade snickered as he dispersed into smoke that rushed Skibo. The smoke was hot, and it felt like a sharp slice.

Skibo closed his eyes and fell to his knees. He reopened them and saw Slade standing twenty yards away with a thick sword that had teeth on its blade stretched all the way to him. The blade quickly contracted back to a normal three-foot blade.

"So easy," said Slade and he sheathed his sword. "Don't bleed all over our factory will ya."

Slade took off and ran into the darkness of the factory room they were in.

Skibo felt his eyes get heavy as their vision slowly began to fade. He tumbled onto the ground, and involuntarily, his eyes closed.

Up on the surface of Luminous, Ryder, Nero, and Hunter had gotten fairly close to the castle. They were behind a large boulder studying the castle and its towers.

_Look at the entrance to the castle, Ryder._

Ryder looked back at the others and said, "This is no longer a hide and assassinate mission. We have to kill him at all cost."

"Why's that?" asked Hunter.

Ryder took out his Revan mask and put it on. He then pointed towards the front door of the castle where two figures stood.

One was athletically built with black hair, and he wore what looked like black pants and tank top with a gray flak jacket. Metal arm guards covered the top his hands and forearms. Next to him was another figure slouched over that looked like it had its hands bound.

"That's ISIS's top fighter, Khilor. He led the attack on the US academy a few years ago."

"Here's my question," said Nero. "What are we waiting for?"

"You know how dangerous he is," said Ryder. "We have to be careful."

"Then let's just go all out from the beginning," he responded.

"It's not as simple as that. Power alone will not beat him. We need strategy," explained Ryder.

"Come out, come out, wherever you are," yelled a voice in the distant.

Ryder looked at Khilor. "He knows we're here."

"Looks like the strategy will have to wait," said Hunter.

Nero stood up.

"Just try to use feint attacks, Nero," said Ryder standing up too.

Nero jumped out into a large opening that was in front of the castle. Ryder and Hunter followed soon after. Ryder had both lightsabers in hand. Hunter had his black katana drawn with black lines on his face and arms showing that he is already using the power of Lucifer. Nero was just standing there like he normally did. Looking calm and collected with no weapon in hand.

"Look who we have here," mocked Khilor. "Is this the US A-team? Oh wait, you turned on them and now work for the Council of Anubis. I always wondered how that happened?"

Ryder stepped forward and said, "You don't deserve explanations. Just death."

"Wow," Khilor said. "That's a bold statement. What if I told you that you deserved the same thing? I mean, you have killed my friends and loved ones. You single handedly ruined my life. I feel like those are grounds for your death."

Nero grew out his five kagunes as a hard, black shell formed on his back and around the top of his face creating a beak like structure over his nose.

"Ryder, if he attacks, I kill the hostage," said Khilor with a chidori extended towards the other figure. He was dressed in all white. White pants, shirt, and shoes. He looked like he just came from a psych ward.

Ryder put his arm out in front of Nero. "Why don't you let him go?" asked Ryder.

"Well if you say so," Khilor responded with a grin.

He broke the chain holding the hostage's hands together, pointed at Ryder and said, "Blair. Dinner."

The newly freed man turned towards and Ryder and the others. His green eyes brightened his pale, pasty skin tone of his face. Black bangs hung down in between his eyes, and he had teal line extend down from the lower part of his eyes.

Blair slowly straightened up and took a few steps forward. As if it was natural, half of a white helmet suddenly began to form on the top left side of his head (it resembled the helmet of Darth Vader, except white). He drew his sword and pointed at Ryder.

Ryder responded by igniting his purple and red lightsabers and got into his form five stance.

"Blair, you might want to power up," said Khilor from the back.

Blair simply nodded.

Pointing his sword towards Ryder, Blair said, "Imprison. Murcielago."

Suddenly, a black aura exploded from Blair and scattered around everyone like rain. Once it stopped, Blair's white shirt had turned into a long white robe with a black line running down the middle. Two long, black wings extended from his back, and his helmet had two large horns extending outward is now sitting on top his head. The teal lines beneath his eyes also widened and became longer.

He dashed towards Ryder and the others swinging his sword. With both lightsabers, Ryder began blocking and tried to find an opening to attack. Nero started stabbing and slicing at Blair to try and get him somehow, but Blair would use his wings to dodge by flying or doing some crazy maneuver.

Hunter composed himself and attacked with his uncanny sword and shadows, but before he could get to Blair, he was attacked by a fury of green energy javelins.

Ryder, with his Mangekyo activated, tried putting Blair under a genjutsu, but it didn't work. He jumped back and used the Force to throw Blair up against the castle; however, Blair's wings allowed him to stabilize and fly back down into the heat of the fight almost instantly.

The black plating on Nero grew all around him and extended off him like a tail; except the tail resembled a wide tail with spider legs. With a newfound burst of speed, Nero closed in on Blair and started to attack him with thicker kagune. Ryder sat back weaving hand signs then said, "Great Fire Annihilation Jutsu!" Ryder began to breathe out a tremendous amount of fire that surrounded Blair. Nero was just fast enough to jump out of the way.

After a few seconds of breathing fire onto Blair, Ryder stopped and began weaving a new set of hand signs. Suddenly, Blair's wings fanned the fire away.

"Lightning Style: Hell Stab One," said Ryder with his index finger pointed at Blair. Lightning then surrounded his hand and crackled all around him.

Ryder bolted towards Blair and jabbed at his heart, but Blair was still fast enough to dodge. However, this wouldn't stop Ryder from trying to get him. With each back handspring or side jump, Ryder had a strike that could fatally wound Blair.

After a few dips and dodges from Blair, Hunter suddenly appeared out from a shadow behind Blair and sliced down Blair's back making him stick out his chest in pain.

Given the opportunity, Ryder thrusted his hand right through Blair's chest. He slowly collapsed to the ground as Ryder's hand slid from out his chest.

Behind them, Khilor was clapping and said, "Wow. That took a lot longer than I expected!"

Ryder grabbed his lightsaber and walked over to Khilor. He held it up to his neck and said, "You're next, demon."

"Don't act like you can lay a finger on me," Khilor said in reply. His eyes turned from a blue to a piercing crimson red as the Mangekyo Sharingan appeared. "That's right. You're not the only one with these eyes."

He closed his left eye then opened it saying, "Amaterasu." A black flame appeared on Ryder's sleeve, so he quickly tore it off revealing a small burn on his forearm.

Khilor jumped towards Ryder throwing a few punches. Ryder quickly attached his lightsaber to his belt then blocked each one of Khilor's attacks thanks to his Sharingan.

Nero zoomed in and began to jab with his kagune, but Khilor dodged the first one then grabbed a second jabbing kagune to propel himself towards Hunter with a kunai in hand.

Hunter sent one of his shadows directly towards Khilor. Using wind manipulation, Khilor pushed himself above the shadow and landed on it sliding towards Hunter. He threw the kunai he was holding at Hunter who deflected it, then drew another to prepare for a little "sword" fight.

Ryder was using the Force to throw random debris around him at Khilor, but it was no prevail thanks to the Sharingan.

Next, he tried a few other jutsu. After weaving hand signs, Ryder held out one hand and yelled, "Gale Style: Laser Circus!"

Multiple streams of black lightning bolted towards Khilor, but without using any hand seals he dispersed some saying, "Wind Style: Steroid Blanks!"

A powerful burst of wind was released from Khilor's mouth. Then he dodged the rest by jumping up on the top of the castle.

"Isn't this fun, old pal?" mocked Khilor.

Finishing a set of hand signs, Ryder said, "Secret Technique: Rising Dragon Storm!"

Curious, Khilor asked to himself, "Ah, what's this?"

Two streams of black clouds shot out from Ryder's hands at surprising speeds. Each stream of clouds coiled and circled around each other until they surrounded Khilor who hadn't moved a single inch. Black and white lightning started flashing from the inside of the clouds. Then Ryder did one more hand sign causing the black clouds to form a pillar. All the electricity concentrated into one bolt of black lightning striking Khilor head on.

The black clouds dispersed and to everyone's dismay, Khilor was still standing. However, the upper body of a purple Susanoo now surrounded him. "What did I say, Ryder? Don't act like you can lay a finger on me." An orange chakra cloak suddenly surrounded Khilor. His Susanoo also grew whiskers and other foxlike features.

"This is my nine-tails chakra mode. I have obtained unlimited power, Ryder. Join ISIS, and we can overthrow the Emperor. We can rule the galaxy as equals!"

Ryder sneered at Khilor and activated his own orange Susanoo. "Fucking die already!"

Khilor shook his head and said, "I tried."

Diminishing his Susanoo to just a haze around him, Khilor bolted directly towards Ryder, but before Ryder could notice what he did, Khilor was already in front of him. His hand was on Ryder's mask as he was looking directly into Khilor Mangekyo. Ryder's vision went completely red.

Ryder opened his eyes to see a ceiling painted white. Next to him, a young boy with black hair and blue eyes shook him saying, "Wake up! Mommy and Daddy are back from their trip!"

Ryder slowly eased out of bed and put on his favorite shirt. It was an Auburn Football shirt. "Connor, wait up for me," he whined. Connor stopped at the top of the stairs to wait on his little brother.

He could over hear his parents and someone else talking down the stairs in the kitchen. He focused his hearing and made out:

"It's the tailed beast that Thatcher put inside her isn't it," their dad said.

"We don't know that," said an unknown voice.

"I don't think so," said the mother. "If he was coming for me, he would've already made his move. He'd be trying to take me over right now."

"Regardless if he is or isn't going for you right now, the committee believes that he IS going for your sons. Or at least he's preparing to go for them. I don't know how he figured out how powerful they are, but he wants them. With both of them in the same area, it creates a better opportunity for him to get them, and the committee thinks that you're putting the whole nation in danger by keeping them together. The head of the committee is on his way right now," said the unknown voice.

"I'm not letting you separate my boy!" yelled the mother.

"Look. I know you don't want to do this, but this could be good for them too. You can train Connor to become a strong ninja, and I think that his potential is high enough to even develop many other powers. Meanwhile, Ryder can develop into a powerful Jedi and ninja. Hell, he could even take over as a Jinchuriki," said the unknown voice.

"I'm not letting them put the fox inside of Ryder. He's too young, and he hasn't even shown any promise to obtaining those powers," said the dad.

"It has to be someone in the family," said the unknown voice.

The room went silent. "What about Connor," said the mother. The room went silent again.

"I've seen his lab results. He's inherited a lot from the both of you. Especially good chakra reserves," said the unknown voice.

"That settles it," said the dad. "Connor will become the new Jinchuuriki."

"I hope he'll be able to take the pain," responded the mother.

The scene faded.

Next thing Ryder knew was that he was grasping for a pair of hands as two men in suits took him from their house. Ryder knew that he was in his older brother's head.

Connor… He was crying. He didn't want to leave his brother or his home. Ryder could feel all of Connor's emotions.

He was angry at his dad for just standing next to the door letting it all happen. He was mad at his mom for the same thing, but at least she didn't leave him. He was mad at the world for taking him away from his only brother.

The scene faded again.

Ryder opened his eyes to see a starry sky. He was strapped down onto a stone slab with some weird swirl design drawn onto his stomach. Next to him was his mother strapped down to another stone slab.

A group of men in lab coats and others in military uniforms walked closer to his mom. One with gold hair and a digital military uniform rolled up his sleeves and performed a combination of hand seals.

Suddenly, a light blue flame appeared on his fingertips. He placed his fingers on his mom's stomach then turned to the bystanders. "Y'all are going to want to step back."

They did so accordingly. The man with golden hair twisted his hand, and the swirl twisted until it looked like a normal circle.

The mom began to scream in pain. Tears rolled down her face as the undoing of the seal caused a significant strain to her body.

He yelled out to his own mother saying, "Mom! Hang in there! Don't leave me too!" Tears were running down his face too. With all his might, he was trying to break free from his restraints to save his mother.

The man took a few steps back, bit his thumb, then slammed it on the ground. A large circle made up of foreign characters appeared and so did a lot of smoke. Out of the smoke, rose a giant red fox that had nine tails.

"Do it now Ace!" yelled a bystander.

He looked at Ryder, who realized that he was watching what happened to his older brother, and said, "Sorry, kid."

Ace did a series of hand seals and extended his palm towards the giant fox. Large, golden chains with spikes on the end shot out and attached themselves to the fox. Next, Ace took the palm that the chains were coming from and placed it on the design that was on Connor's stomach.

"No… Please don't do this," Connor whimpered. He could feel the chains becoming attached to his very core. He could feel them reeling in this fox demon. With every chain link that went inside his stomach, it felt as if he was getting stabbed by a sword. Next to him, Ace passed out from overusing his chakra.

The scene faded.

Ryder was now sitting at a table within a room that was nothing but stone, eating chicken noodle soup. Across from him was his mother. She was pale and had dark bags beneath her eyes. She had looked this way ever since the Nine-tails was extracted from her.

"When are we going home, mom," asked Connor.

She didn't reply.

"Mom!" he yelled.

Tears began to fall from her face as she said, "I'm so sorry, Connor. We should've ran away from the very beginning." She got up and walked over to Connor and gave him a big hug.

A few tears rolled down his face before he asked, "We aren't going back are we?"

She didn't reply.

The scene faded.

Ryder opened his eyes to the darkness of night. He was still in his older brother's memories. Connor woke up in the middle of the night with his mom right next to him talking in her sleep. "Ryder... Ryder…"

Connor rolled back over and began thinking to himself. 'She must really love him so much more than me. Why won't she talk about me?' he thought in his head.

For the next few months, Connor would wake up in the middle of the night multiple times throughout the week hearing the same thing. Slowly, Connor began to hate his mom for not loving him. He also began to slowly hate his little brother for stealing that love. For making him endure all that pain. For not coming to rescue him. Throughout the day, it seemed like she avoided him. Skipping meals together. Avoided spending time with him. Not talking to him when they were together.

One night, Connor had a dream. It started with this man wearing a pale, white mask. Underneath it were the same red eyes that he had gotten during the ritual four years ago. He suddenly saw the masked man and his mom in the same room.

She was sitting down at the table eating soup. Connor felt as if he turned into the man with the mask and obtained a first-person view. He called out to his mom saying, "Mom, can you come here for a moment?"

She got up without saying a word and walked towards him. Once she was standing in front of him, she asked, "What's wrong, Ryder? Oops, I mean Connor."

She giggled off her mishap.

Connor felt rage boil up inside the masked man to the point where everything took a shade of red. He coated his hand with lightning, then stabbed her through the heart. Her eyes looked at him confused yet full of sadness and grief, then they rolled back into her head.

As if Connor's body came out of the masked man's body, he saw that his eyes changed in design and could feel incredible power swell inside of him.

At that moment, Connor woke up sweating. His mom hadn't noticed, so he went back to sleep. However, every time he closed his eyes, he would picture himself killing his mom then the design of his red eyes changing. This didn't just happen that night. This happened for sixteen days straight.

After sixteen days of no sleep, Connor began seeing the man with the white mask everywhere he looked. Now he would see a humanoid figure wearing all white with the mask on. It was in the windows. In his cereal. In his mirrors. Everywhere.

That dinner, he walked into the kitchen to grab some paper. It was his own birthday, but he always wrote to Ryder on that day to let him know how his year had been. Over the past few years. The letters were hateful. Connor made sure to let Ryder know how much he resented him and their father. Every year, he never got a response from him, but he kept doing it anyway. It was a little therapeutic for him.

"Mom, do you know where the pen is?" he asked searching the drawers.

She didn't answer.

"Mom?" Connor turned towards her at the table to see a humanoid figure wearing white pants and long sleeve shirt standing up looking at him. On its face was the white mask with crimson eyes. Connor's eyes widened as he backed up into the countertop. It slowly walked towards him.

"Go away. This is just another dream," he said beginning to cry.

It kept getting closer and closer.

"Mom!" he yelled.

It was now right in front of him leaning towards him to grab him. Connor quickly coated his right hand with lightning and thrusted it through the masked man's chest. With his eyes shut, he slid his hand out from the masked man's chest and heard him hit the ground with a thud.

He opened his eyes to see his mother lying dead in a blood-stained white dress. A purple haze began to form around him as he fell to his knee screaming. He fell on top of her, hugging her, wishing that he had killed himself instead.

The scene faded.

Ryder opened his eyes to Khilor staring at him with his hand on Ryder's mask. He smiled and said, "Next time, I won't leave you alive. I'll be taking this as a trophy. I think it'll look good on one of our friends." He grabbed it in a fast motion then teleported out of there using Kamui.

Ryder's orangish red Susanoo dissolved into smoke as he wiped a tear from his eye. He turned to Nero and Hunter and started walking towards them.

"What was that about, and why'd he take your mask?" asked Nero.

"He's saving us for a bigger battle. That fight wasn't entertaining enough for him. He also said that we have a mutual friend who would like that mask," explained Ryder. "Call Katie and tell her to pick us up. I'm going to check on Murdoch and Skibo. Also, take Blair in. He's our seventh Shadow." Using the Force and his chakra, Ryder sprinted off to the factory where he felt Skibo's chi spike.

Back where Nero and Hunter were, they looked at each other, then at Blair. "Something has to be going on with him," Hunter said.

"You got that right, but it's not our place to start getting nosey," replied Nero. He took out his communicator and said, "Tartarus. This is Cthulhu. Pick us up at the castle."

"Roger that, Cthulhu," she replied after a few seconds.

Ryder jumped down into the pit where he sensed Skibo and Murdoch fighting. Right when he landed, he saw Murdoch in a crater in the ground, and Skibo about thirty feet away covered in blood.

He rushed over to Skibo and turned him over onto his back. Blood was still slowly coming out of the gash on his stomach. He checked Skibo's pulse and felt it barely going. Gathering the Force into his hands, he used it to partially mend the wound back together. With the wound closed, he ran over to Murdoch.

Over all his cuts was a black liquid with a red hue to it. He picked up a little bit of it on his finger and brought it up to his nose to smell it; however, it flew back to the same wound it was covering like a magnet. Ryder checked his pulse. He could feel it faintly pulsating.

Ryder threw Murdoch over his shoulders and jumped up to the top of the pit. Using the Force, he reached out and picked up Skibo. He brought him all the way up to the top. Ryder pulled out his communicator and spoke into it, "Tartarus, I turned on my location beacon. I need you to come pick us up."

A few seconds went by before he heard her say, "Roger that Typhon. Heading there now."

Ryder picked up Skibo with the Force again and brought him outside. Within a few minutes, the Rogue Shadow lowered down above them with the boarding ramp down. Nero jumped down to the ground and picked up Skibo.

He looked at Ryder and said, "They sure did get beaten to a pulp." Ryder nodded and jumped up onto the ramp and was quickly followed by Nero.

Skibo and Murdoch were put in an incubator right next to Blair. "What makes you so sure about Blair?" asked Nero.

"I put him under a genjutsu, and we talked for a while," replied Ryder. He left the infirmary and went to the cockpit. "Let's get out of here," he said to Katie.

She looked up into his soulless eyes and said, "We've got some company on this planet that want to speak with us."

"Who is it?" he asked looking down at her.

"President Reed, General Rodan, Doctor Rogers, and Jackson," she replied.

Waiting a few seconds before he replied, he said, "Okay. Let's go."

The Rogue Shadow left the castle and headed to the other side of Luminous. After about three hours of flying, they picked up a large ship on their radar. "That's them," Katie said.

"Take us down," replied Ryder. The ship steadily lowered to the ground. Out in front of the ship were three people standing shoulder to shoulder.

The Rogue Shadow opened it loading ramp and out came Ryder, Nero, Katie, and Hunter. They walked up to the three others.

"It's good to see y'all," said President Reed. He extended his hand for a handshake.

Ryder accepted the handshake and said, "I wish it was under better circumstances though. Murdoch and two others are in critical condition right now in there." He pointed to the Rogue Shadow.

"Let's get out of the open. Follow me," said the President.

Ryder waited for Jackson and Rodan to turn and follow before he did. Something seemed off with those two. They were usually talkative with him, but they hadn't said a word yet.

The President was wearing his normal clothes. A blue suit with a red neck tie. Jackson was wearing a green tunic and pants with an orange belt. General Rodan on the other hand was wearing a marine's camo uniform. They were all clean.

Ryder felt the presence of on lookers spying on them. They passed open doors and windows to other rooms and hallways. He could hear some talk about the blood stains and tears on his purple shirt. The tear on his pants that ran over his thigh.

"Hey. Isn't that Ryder Jace. The mercenary? I heard he betrayed us," whispered a male student to his friend right before the whole group passed his open door.

"Yeah. Why is he here," replied the friend very snarkily.

Without a second thought, Nero grew one kagune and thrusted it into the control panel of the door shutting it immediately.

The President led them to the conference room on the bridge of the ship, and they sat down around a table. The President clicked a button on a remote.

A holographic screen appeared above their table. "This was taken about thirty minutes ago. I can tell you have blood and tears all over you. I don't know if you have learned teleportation techniques, but you're our number one suspect," said the President.

The video showed a Jedi with a red lightsaber slaughtering everyone at one of their hidden academies on Earth. The thing that made Ryder the top suspect was that the assassin was wearing Ryder's Revan mask. This assailant was canceling out every magic/special attack with his lightsaber and was using chi.

"You're the only one with that mask," Rodan spoke out.

"Not as of three hours ago. Katie and Nero can vouch for me. That mask was stolen from me by Khilor. He said a friend of mine would like it," explained Ryder.

"Ah, so Khilor ambushed your team here instead of it being Zorg," said Jackson.

Katie looked at Ryder. "How do they know about our mission?"

"I've been in contact with them for a few months now. A war is coming, and right now we're doing missions for the enemy," said Ryder.

"Is this true?" Jackson asked Rodan.

Rodan nodded.

He reached for his communicator and spoke into it saying, "Rogers, come in here." The door opened and in walked Dr. Rogers wearing the same lab coat as he did back when Ryder was with the US.

"Ah, good to see you again, Ryder," he said. "I trust that you've put our past behind us."

"Just go ahead and look into my mind again. You'll quickly find out if I have," Ryder replied.

Rogers smiled at Ryder then turned to the President. "He's telling the truth. That wasn't him in the video. But boy does he have a secret."

Rogers' face suddenly began turning red, and it developed red rashes quickly. Rogers started scratching his face violently just when he quickly crouched over and clutched his side.

"Say another word and I'll crush all the organs in your body," said Ryder standing behind him.

"Cut it out, Ryder!" yelled President Reed.

"That's your only warning," Ryder said to Rogers relieving him of his pain.

"You fucking maniac," said Rogers getting back up to his feet. "That information can help us win this war!"

"It's my information to tell," Ryder said to Roger.

"What are you talking about?" asked Reed "If it helps us win the war, please! Tell us."

Ryder kept his glare on Rogers and said, "Khilor's my brother. We were split up when I was three."

President Reed and Rodan quickly looked at each other. Both in disbelief and worried for their lives too.

"Don't worry, I'm still gonna kill him," Ryder said to the President.

Silence filled the room for what seemed like an hour. President Reed broke it saying, "Ok, let's sit back down. There is another thing we need to discuss."

Everyone sat back down at the table, and Dr. Rogers left the room. President Reed looked at Ryder and asked, "How's five weeks?"

Ryder nodded and said, "That'll give us enough time to recruit and train some."

Nero looked at Ryder and then at President Reed. "What are y'all talking about?"

President Reed was about to speak, but Ryder held up his hand to quiet him. "He's talking about an exodus," he said. "In five weeks, we are going to gather as many student's at that academy who want to follow us and escape. The President is going to bring a single transport cruiser and that's how we'll leave." Ryder looked at both Nero and Katie. "Any questions?"

"What if the council wakes up?" asked Nero.

"Then that's something we have to deal with. But, that ship HAS to leave no matter what," replied Ryder.

President Reed nodded. "They will be great assets for us in the upcoming war."

Nero nodded in approval.

"Well, that's all we needed to talk about. Y'all are more than welcome to stay here for a night if you want."

"Thank you, but we need to head back. It's been a long two weeks," replied Ryder.

"No problem. Hey. It was good to see all of you; I hope that y'all continue to be safe," said the President.

Ryder smiled at him, turned around, threw up his hand like he was waving and said, "We'll keep in contact."

Ryder, Nero, and Katie walked passed the sliding door and when down the elevator to the Rouge Shadow.

No one said a word on the way to Shadow.

"Ryder!" yelled someone behind them.

Ryder turned around and saw a skinny, white guy with brown hair running up to him. Ryder began laughing.

"What the fuck is up with you," he said throwing his hand towards him.

Ryder did a little hand shake and said, "It's good to see you, Jake. It's been too long."

"You're damn right about that. Luca wasn't able to come down, but he wanted me to tell you, 'You still can't ball,'" said Jake.

Ryder chuckled. "He's just jealous cause he can't shoot like me."

Jake smiled. "I miss you man. We need to get everyone back together and chill."

"For sure," Ryder responded. "When everything dies down, let's do it." Ryder extended his hand. Jake dapped him up and ended it with a hug.

"Catch ya later, brother," said Jake.

"Stay safe," responded Ryder.

Jake turned and headed back into the US ship, and Ryder left for the Rogue Shadow. He got in and walked to the cockpit. He looked at Nero and Katie and said, "Let's get out of here."

Katie nodded and turned on the ship's thrusters.


	28. Chapter 27: Plans of the Exodus

_**Warning**__: There is a point in this chapter where it gets fairly sexual. I'll create a break in the story to warn those that don't want to read anything like that. I've never written anything like this before, but it kind of just flowed when I was writing the chapter._

**Chapter 27: Plans of the Exodus**

The mapping system said that it would take about three days for the Rogue Shadow to make it back to Khan in the Ganghis district. Ryder was sitting inside the infirmary the whole time because he wanted to know about Murdoch and Skibo's fight and talk to Blair when he woke up.

While he was waiting, Katie walked in and placed her hand on his shoulder. "How are your wounds healing?"

"They're getting better," Ryder responded dully.

She grabbed his face and turned it towards her, "Look. I know you're going through a hard time, but me, Nero, and even Hunter are your family too. It hurts us to see our leader like this. Talk to me about it."

Ryder smiled and said, "Thank you, Katie. That means a lot. I need to be here for these guys when they wake up, but I promise. I'll talk to you later."

Katie gave a smirk then kissed Ryder on the cheek. She left the room, and Ryder went back to waiting for one of the three injured to wake up.

Murdoch was the first to wake up of the three. His face was a lot paler than what Ryder remembered.

"I'm glad you're awake, Murdoch. You've been asleep for about twenty-four hours now," said Ryder.

Murdoch rubbed his head upon hearing this news.

"How're you feeling?"

Murdoch looked around the room letting his eyes and mind adjust to realizing where he was. The walls and ceilings were steel, but a bright light shone over his head. To his left was Skibo and someone else he didn't recognize.

"Damn, Ryder. I got my ass kicked."

Ryder laughed. "Don't push yourself, Murdoch. You were pretty banged up when I found you."

"Really? Cause I feel great right now to be honest," replied Murdoch.

Ryder paused to think. "Say Murdoch, what powers do you have?"

He looked at Ryder confused. "I'm only a Shinigami. You know that." Murdoch paused and stared at Ryder. "Why? What makes you ask?"

Ryder scratched his head and said, "It might be nothing, but when I found you, there was some black liquid oozing from your wounds, and when I picked up a little bit of it, it flew right back to your wound like a magnet."

"Wow," Murdoch said. "That's never happened before."

"Do you mind telling me what all went down during your fight?" asked Ryder.

"No problem," complied Murdoch. "Ha, can we go somewhere else though?"

Ryder took him into the main hold and sat him down on the couch. He walked to the kitchen and grabbed two glasses of ice water. "Okay, so how did it begin?"

Murdoch told him that they had fought someone that could open chakra limiters in his body, possessed the Sharingan, and was a Shinigami. He never revieled his Zanpakto to Murdoch, but Murdoch just knew that it was one. The last think he remembered was some sort of technique that created a mini moon which produced an extremely bright light. Once the light was produced, Murdoch said that his body started to hurt extremely badly. That his mouth and skin started to sting and burn. Then the enemy attacked him. That was all that Murdoch could remember.

"I see. Sounds like he could use the eight inner gates. He'll be trouble in the future. But back to you. I want to try something out on you," said Ryder.

Murdoch agreed out of curiosity.

"Okay, stand up," Ryder said to Murdoch. He did so. Ryder grabbed a kunai and Murdoch's hand then placed the kunai in it.

He looked Murdoch in the eyes and asked, "Are you ready?"

Murdoch nodded then looked at his palm.

Ryder sliced his palm waiting to see if blood or this black liquid would come out. Right when the flesh opened, the two immediately saw red, but when the blood ran from the wound, the two realized that it was black. However, the black liquid wasn't runny. It stayed where the wound was. Slowly, the black liquid seeped back into Murdoch's body leaving a closed wound.

"What the fuck?" Murdoch was confused yet astonished. "Did that stuff just heal me?" He rubbed his hand wondering what the black liquid was.

Ryder rubbed his head and said, "Yeah, I think it healed you down on Luminous too." He put away to kunai saying, "I'm curious to know if this is a new power of yours. Do you think that it had something to do with the mini moon?"

Murdoch put his arms around his head, "I don't know, but there's only way to find out."

"Okay, well next full moon you're going outside," said Ryder.

*BEEP – BEEP - BEEP*

Katie yelled out to Ryder from the cockpit, "Someone's vitals just spiked in the infirmary!"

Ryder looked at Murdoch and said, "Let's go see who woke up." The two got up from the couch and turned the corner into the infirmary. Sitting up in his bed was a pale teenager with black hair that was long enough to cover parts of his eyes. Running down his eyes as a turquoise green line.

Ryder walked over to the bed and put his hand on Blair's shoulder saying, "Blair, do you remember me?"

Blair looked Ryder up and down then glared at Murdoch.

"This is Murdoch," said Ryder. "He's a part of my team too."

Quicker than a blink of an eye, Blair unsheathed his Zanpakto and sliced Murdoch in half. Murdoch's torso flew up into the air and back towards the door.

Ryder quickly activated his two lightsabers and pointed them at Blair. "What the hell was that for?!"

The black liquid from Murdoch's torso and legs began to ooze out from his flesh.

"Say something," yelled Ryder!

"Why… Why… How the fuck am I still alive," muttered a voice behind Ryder.

Ryder spun around to see Murdoch's legs slowly drag towards his torso. In-between the two body parts was the black liquid that had formed into fiber-like ropes that connected the two body parts. Ryder looked over his shoulder at Blair, then back at Murdoch and knelt by his side.

"Does it hurt?" asked Ryder.

Murdoch grimaced and said, "Not really. It just feels strange." Murdoch looked down at his two body parts being put back together, chuckled and said, "I guess we know what the black liquid does now."

Ryder stood up and walked towards Blair, grabbed his shirt and shoved him into the wall. "What was that all about?"

Only one phrase crept from Blair's mouth, "A bat knows when a vampire is lurking."

Ryder let Blair go and said, "What do you mean, Blair?"

"He's an ultimate vampire," replied Blair. "Like I said, a bat always knows when a vampire is around."

Blair looked down at Murdoch and said, "I figured that you didn't know that you were one, so I helped out."

Murdoch slowly sat up and rubbed his stomach. "You could've just told me instead of slicing me in half."

Down the hall, Katie's voice could be heard saying, "Ryder! I need your help in here!"

Ryder looked at Blair and said, "Since you know so much about this, why don't you start informing him on his powers. I mean you are a part of the team now." Ryder left the room and went into the cockpit.

"It's Gambino," Katie said pointing at the monitor.

Ryder sighed and said, "Yes, Master?"

"How far away are y'all?" he asked

"Three days, sir."

"Hurry back. We need you to teach three classes. A hundred students in each," finished Gambino as he turned off his end of the communicator.

Ryder sat down in the co-pilot chair releasing a large sigh of breath. Leaning his head towards Katie he said, "I thought that was going to go a lot worse than what it was."

Katie smiled at him and said, "Well let's just hurry and get back. The sooner we leave, the better." Katie turned her head back towards the space that the ship was flying in.

Three days later, the Rogue Shadow began lowering down at the Council's Academy base.

"Take it down easy," Ryder said to Nero. The starship gently glided into the hanger. "Okay, Katie and Blair come with me. We have to go report to the Council."

Ryder threw his pack over his shoulder and looked at Nero, Murdoch, and Skibo saying, "Make sure the place is tidy before you leave. Then go rest. All of you deserve and need it." He pressed the button that lowered the loading ramp and began walking down it.

Blair had on his usual white robe with black trim and his half helmet. Ryder was wearing his khaki shorts, ninja sandals, and a blue shirt with a high collar.

Katie was the main show of the group. Her cut off black top, that really just looked like a sports bra, showed off her developed chest. She wore short khaki shorts with a flannel tied around her waist. Katie had gorgeous, tan skin and black hair pulled up in a pony tail.

Walking through a hanger full of ships and other students was something Blair had never done before. "What is everyone doing in here?" asked Blair.

"These are either students just wandering or workers repairing the ships here. Katie here, is probably the best that's at this base. You won't be a student. We'll just have training sessions to improve your skills," explained Ryder.

At the door that led to the elevator was the hanger manager, Blake, the berserker. "Look what the cat dragged in," he yelled at Ryder laughing. "You sure did reel in a gloomy one here," he said pointing at Blair.

Knocking his hand down to his side, Ryder said to him, "I wouldn't do that. He's already sliced Murdoch in half."

Shaking his head, Blake said, "He truly is a part of your crew, isn't he?"

"Fits right in," said Ryder grinning as the doors to the elevator shut.

Blair looked at Ryder and said, "Is everyone here like that?"

Ryder tilted his head from side to side and said, "Somewhat. Some are nice, but a lot are douchebags."

"Look, Blair," said Katie. "When we get in front of the Council, don't say anything unless they ask you something, and even then, me or Ryder are going to try to talk for you."

With a blank face, Blair asked, "Why?"

"If they find out that your smart and not a dumb war machine, they'll take you as one of their own warrior slave. Make you do their jobs and what not," said Ryder.

"So, basically what you're doing for them," replied Blair.

"No," sneered Ryder. "I joined them on my own, and I have a plan. A plan that they're falling for."

"Doesn't seem like it," said Blair as the elevator doors opened. The room was lit up with torches that surrounded five chairs that looked like thrones. Three people were sitting in them. Ryder and Katie walked towards the center of the room, so Blair followed behind them. The three knelt down as a sign of honor.

"Is this the seventh Shadow, Ryder?" asked Gambino.

Ryder stood up and said, "Yes. This is Blair, the Shadow of the Dragon. He is a hollow."

Dr. van Hoosier, with his Sharingan activated, stared at the black hole that was on Blair's neck and said, "That explains the hole." The doctor kept eying him. "What's your power?"

Before Blair could say a word, Ryder responded saying, "He's still a little shy from being a slave and all, but when he releases his Zanpakto, he grows wings like a bat."

"Simple," muttered Stacy to herself. "So, cliché."

"You don't think that the hollow could be useful?" asked Gambino.

"Precisely," she said. "He'd be the weakest of our slaves."

Gambino flipped his hand and said, "Fine. Any other news, Ryder?"

Ryder cleared his throat and said, "Yes. Denzel wasn't the one in charge of the factory. It was Khilor. Him and his partner did a number to my team, and honestly barely got away without dying."

"Well, I think I speak on the behalf of the Council when I say that I'm glad you didn't," said Dr. van Hoosier.

"Thank you. Also, we did not come across a titan with the ability to armor itself," replied Ryder.

"I see," replied van Hoosier. "Seems as if ISIS had already moved him."

"One of my apprentices found something that you might be interested in, Ryder," Stacy said.

"And what's that?" he asked.

"I don't think you'd like it if I said it out loud," Stacy said.

"Oooo. Ryder has some sneaky secrets," Gambino said.

"You'll find me in my office, if you want it back. Now go," she said shooing them away with her hand.

"Thank you, Serqet," he said bowing. Ryder, Katie, and Blair walked into the elevator, and the doors shut behind them. Ryder pressed the ground floor button.

"I hate meetings with her," said Katie rubbing her temples.

"Don't worry," said Ryder putting his arm around her. "She's not gonna get what she wants with me." Ryder kissed Katie on her head.

"Does she really have something for you?" asked Blair.

"Maybe," replied Ryder. "A lot of the time she just wants to have sex with me."

Katie glared up at Blair and said, "But he's mine."

The elevator doors opened and the halls were full of students going from class to class. Suddenly, Ryder could hear and feel a loud vibration flowing through the academy. He looked down at Katie and said, "Do you feel that?"

She looked around and said, "Feel what?"

"Damnit," Ryder said. "She has a holocron."

"Stacy?" asked Katie.

Ryder nodded.

"You can get that later," she said. "I need your help with your upcoming class."

"Okay, let me take Blair to his room first. Meet me in my office," he told Katie. She nodded then headed to his office.

Ryder turned to Blair and said, "Okay, well, we're actually close to your room. Follow me."

The two headed down the hall and around a few corners. On the door read a three-digit number, "481." "Here you are," said Ryder. "Meet me in the hanger at six in the morning," he said. "Do you remember where that is?"

Blair nodded.

"Okay, then make yourself at home. Murdoch is across the hall if you have any questions."

"Thanks, Ryder. See ya tomorrow," said Blair as he walked into his room and shut the door.

Ryder smiled. I'm sure he's a lot happier, he thought to himself. Ryder hurried off to his office.

Ryder opened his office door and walked in to see Katie sitting at his desk. "What is it you're working on?" Ryder asked.

Katie looked up at Ryder and said, "You have over three hundred students new in this class. That's a lot."

Ryder smiled and said, "Yeah, that's a lot of kids we have to convince to come with us."

Katie smiled and stood up in front of Ryder. She took his bag and threw it to the ground.

Ryder looked at Katie and said, "Hey, be care—," but before he finished, Katie was on her tippy toes with her lips attached to his.

She pushed Ryder onto his couch then took the flannel off from around her waist. Ryder leaned back as she straddled his thighs. After a few minutes, Katie pushed Ryder onto his back. She grabbed his hands and placed them on her waist, then leaned down on him and began kissing again.

Suddenly a knock was heard at his door. "Damnit," Ryder said. "What do you want?!" yelled Ryder.

"Master Ryder, the Council has asked for your presence up in the sky loft. Some news about a holocron," said the voice.

Katie crawled off Ryder and sat against the side of the couch. "I'm sorry, Katie, but I have to go."

She shook her head and said, "That's fine, but I'm going to sleep in your bed. I'm tired, and its late." She got up and went to Ryder's room with her flannel.

Ryder stood up from the couch and fixed his hair. "Okay, I'm coming," he yelled from his side of the door! Ryder grabbed his bag and opened the door.

An astromech droid sat there then said, "You can go up to the ninth floor. That's where they're waiting for you."

Ryder said, "Thanks." Then walked towards the elevator.

The elevator doors opened to the sky loft, and Ryder stepped out and looked around but saw no one. "Hello?"

"Over here, Ryder!" yelled a voice from around the corner.

Ryder walked over to where he heard the voice coming from, then saw Stacy in a king-size bed with a holocron on the nightstand. "Glad you made it," she said in a soft but strong voice. "Why do you have your Sharingan activated?"

"I'm here for the holocron," said Ryder. "They kind of do that when I get nervous or on edge."

***THIS IS THE WARNING FOR 'M' RATED CONTENT***

Stacey sat up and let the red covers fall from her body. She had nice blonde hair that fell a few inches past her shoulders, and her chest was very developed. She threw her legs to the side of the bed and walked in front of Ryder.

"Why don't you come over here with me? I can help ease that nervousness." She grabbed Ryder by the bottom of his shirt and began walking him to the bed. She pushed him down on the bed then crawled on top of him.

She gently kissed him on the lips. "Did you forget to activate your genjutsu?" she asked Ryder.

He nodded slowly.

"Good," she replied with a seductive smile.

She slid both hands beneath his shirt then pulled it over his head. Ryder tried to stop her, but he couldn't summon enough strength to do so.

As she laid down on his chest, the two began kissing. Her chest felt amazing against his. She kept kissing him and slowly kissed down his chest until she got to his pants. Her eyes looked up at Ryder as she slid out down his zipper and unbuttoned his pants, sliding them down too. With a menacing smile, she crawled back up to Ryder's waist and straddled him.

Ryder felt nothing but pleasure as Stacey rocked back and forth while straddling his manhood. After a few minutes, Ryder could feel her hypnotic powers wearing down, so he took advantage of the situation. He grabbed her waist and pulled her to him quickly locking lips. He kissed her hard and passionately until another idea popped into his head.

Ryder slowly got up and turned Stacy over on her stomach. He brought her knees up closer until she was on her knees and forearms. Her big, white ass waved in the air. Ryder smiled as he indulged himself in everything that Stacy had to offer.

***This is the end of the "Warning" content***

When the two were finished and too tired for anything else. Ryder turned Stacy towards him and flexed his Sharingan, putting her under a genjutsu that would make her believe that this was all a dream. Ryder wiped his forehead and reached to grab the holocron on the night stand. He stood up, got changed, and left the room with Stacy passed out in her bed.

Ryder got to the ground floor and walked towards his office. He unlocked the door, opened it, then walked to his room where he found Katie, half naked, asleep. He smiled, stripped to his boxers, and climbed into the bed with her.

She felt him climb into bed and rolled over, smiled, kissed him, then went back to sleep. Ryder threw his arm around her and fell asleep too.

The next morning Ryder woke up to his usual 6:00 AM alarm blaring in his ear. The classic sound of an alarm clock was one of his least favorite sounds, but it got him up and out of bed. He rolled over to see Katie, but she wasn't there. A piece of paper took her place on his bed.

He reached over, grabbed it, and read, "Good morning! I was called early to work on a few ships. I'll see you later though! Xoxo Katie." Ryder smiled and put the note on his nightstand.

Getting out of bed, Ryder immediately headed to his bathroom. The door slid open. The bathroom wasn't very big. It was only a sink, toilet, and a shower inside a room that was a little bigger than a walk-in closet. He threw off his boxers and hopped in the shower.

While washing, Ryder couldn't keep his mind off the holocron that he took from Stacy's last night. It was red, but it didn't feel like the other dark side holocrons. He felt a soothing malevolent aura come from deep inside it. It scared him a little bit to open it.

"_Hahaha,"_ laughed Anakin from within. _"You're more of a man than me if the only thing that you're thinking of from last night is that holocron."_

'Shut up,' replied Ryder.

_You know. I might be a Sith Lord, but I know that her hypnotic powers wore off. You could've stopped, but you didn't. Then you came back and kissed Katie goodnight. I wasn't even bold enough to cheat on my girl,"_ said Anakin.

"What makes you so talkative now?" asked Ryder.

"_Well, you never take my advice or even want my help. I didn't even know why I chose you anymore. But last night reminded me. There's a darkness in you that you don't even realize. We're more alike than you even think."_

"I let you use me as a vessel just to receive power from you. That's it," explained Ryder.

Ryder forced himself not to think about it anymore.

'So, three classes with a hundred students in each. I don't even know what the classes are about,' he thought. Suddenly, the bathroom door slid open while he was still in the shower.

"Hello?!" Ryder yelled out. He didn't hear anyone, but then the sound of wheels rolling across the ground revealed who it was. "R2, is that you?"

*BEEP ZIP WOOOO WIP*

"What?! Why wasn't I told that my class is in twenty minutes? Did Gambino tell you what the class was," he asked?

*WOO BEEP BLOOP*

Ryder palmed his face. "I'm teaching a defense class?"

*WEEP LOOP BEEP*

"At least 'Swordplay' and 'Unique Jutsu' are interesting," said Ryder. "I'll hurry up and get over there," said Ryder. "Go ahead and meet me in the auditorium."

R2 left the bathroom and strolled to the classroom that Ryder's defense class was in. Ryder on the other hand, took a few more minutes to get ready. He dried off from the shower and went to his room to change. He put on his white shorts and navy blue hoodie. On the back of the hoodie was a black circle with two red rings inside the circle. Attached to his belt was his red lightsaber.

Walking towards the classroom, he saw a lot of students running down the hall and around a corner on the right. "Damnit, that's where my class is, but I don't feel like running," he muttered to himself.

"I'm right there with you," said a voice from behind Ryder.

Ryder turned around and saw a guy in a black trench coat. His hair was half blonde and half black. He was no rush as he casually walked towards Ryder.

"I'm assuming that you're Master Ryder?" he asked.

"Yep, and I'm assuming that you're in my class?" replied Ryder.

"That's right. I'm in three of yours. The name's, Cam. Cam McKracken," he said holding out his hand.

Ryder shook his hand and said, "Good to meet you Cam. And what's your power?"

Cam chuckled and said, "You'll just have to wait and see."

The two rounded the corner, and Ryder's room was the right there on the right. Cam quickly slid in front of Ryder and walked into the room then said, "You aren't late if you beat the teacher to the room." Ryder smiled in return as he walked in.

The majority of the students in the room were talking to one another. The seats were set up like movie theatre seats with ten seats per row for ten rows. "Hush up everyone," said Ryder putting his hand high in the air. "Welcome to your Defense class."

A student in the back raised her hand. She was around the same age as Cam and had dark brown, curly hair.

"Great. The class nemesis. What is it?" asked Ryder.

She awkwardly smiled, "My name's Molly Teel. And, this is the advance defense class. Also, all of us are in your three classes."

"Great," said Ryder. "Sorry y'all. I was told that I was teaching this class only a few days ago, so I don't have much prepared."

"Then why not wing it from your experience," said a voice in the middle. Ryder looked at who said that. "I mean, you're experienced. Literally, there are legends about you, but I'm not so sure if they're true anymore."

"Okay, I'll take you up on that suggestion. Now, why don't you come down here and help me," said Ryder.

A boy with blonde hair wearing blue gym shorts, tennis shoes, and a white, Supreme shirt. In his hand was a sheathed sword. "And what's your name?" asked Ryder.

"I'm Sam Fontana. A Shinigami."

"Ah, a Shinigami. So, you're familiar with swordsplay?" asked Ryder.

"Yeah, but I'm not very familiar with your Jedi techniques," Sam said.

Ryder went behind his desk and grabbed a spare katana. "That's fine. That is why you're in this class."

Ryder turned to face the other students. "With the assumption that all of you are familiar with common swordsplay, and if you are someone that doesn't use a sword, it won't hurt for you to learn. There are a total of seven Jedi techniques. All of them serve a different purpose." Ryder turned to Sam who was now at the large, open space in front of the students. "Unsheathe your sword."

Sam did as told and held it in front of him. "I will be teaching you a technique called, Makashi. Also known as Form Two. It is based on good footwork and counters. Now pay attention."

Ryder looked at Sam and said, "Attack me."

Sam nodded. He lifted his sword over his head and swung down at Ryder. Quickly, Ryder knew that Sam was going to use a style close to Form Five because of his first strike. Ryder slide his right foot back and turned to his side. His sword was vertical in front of him and deflected Sam's downward swing. The indirect contact put Sam off balanced, so Ryder spun so that his back was touching Sam's back. He then took his sword and pushed it behind him.

Sam stopped his movement and realized that the tip of Ryder's katana was touching his back. "That's your first lesson with Form Two. Always keep your balance because you want your opponent to lose their own balance. It's the key to using this form, and it also key in the basics of survival." Ryder saw everyone in the room writing down what he just said.

He turned to Sam and said, "Thanks for demonstrating with me. Now, you can return to your seat." Sam walked back to his seat in the middle of the rows.

Ryder then lunged forward and thrusted his katana forward with his free hand in the air. Next, he raised his hand up with his sword pointed down. Then he lunged and thrusted forward again but a little higher than last time. He pulled his sword back close with it tilted upwards. Then raised his wrist and dropped his blade down low.

After that stance, Ryder looked up at his students and said, "That is the stance practice for this form. I'll do it one more time very slowly. Be sure to record or do whatever to memorize these stances. Remember, the best way to defend against sword fighters is to know their forms in and out. Even though people might not use these forms explicitly, they unconsciously do." He then ran through the stances one more time.

Ryder turned to his desk and put the katana on top of it. "Now, for some real practice. We're going out to the training grounds. All of those who are not shinobi will work on their Makashi forms. Shinobi will come with me and learn new jutsu… I take that back, I want everyone there to see how these jutsu work, so that you can defend against them and know their weakness. This is a powerful jutsu and the best way to defend against an attack is to?" Ryder asked his class with his arms up insinuating a response.

"Know the attack," responded his class in unison.

"So, everyone pack your bags and follow me." Ryder walked out the door with one-hundred students in line behind him.

While walking to the training grounds, Cam found his way past the girls who wanted to be close to Ryder because of his looks. "Master Ryder," he said.

Ryder looked over his shoulder and said, "What is it, Mr. Mysterious?"

Cam laughed a little, "Is there a way for me to learn jutsu even if I'm not a shinobi?"

"That means I need to know what your powers are," Ryder replied.

"Fine," he said. "I'm a Nen user and a Shinigami. Arrancar to be exact."

Ryder opened the doors to the outside training ground. He kept walking and talking saying, "I think that there might be a way. It won't be the traditional way, but you might be able to if your Spiritual Pressure is strong enough."

Cam kept walking, but Ryder could tell that he was in deep thought. "So, you're saying that I could transmute my reiatsu into an element or something like chakra?" asked Cam.

"Possibly. I've never seen it done before, but it could work," said Ryder.

The whole class arrived at the training grounds. The training grounds was a large field. On one side of the field, four-foot tree stumps with targets attached to them. Away from the large field, a make shift city stood for real-time training purposes.

"Okay, everyone, gather around," announced Ryder. The class closed in around Ryder. "This is called the Rasengan." Ryder held out his palm then suddenly a blue sphere of swirling energy appeared.

Ryder looked at a tree close by him. He immediately sprinted towards it and pushed the blue sphere into the tree. The bark and wood began to fly off violent, and all that was left was a short stump.

He turned and looked at his students then said, "The Rasengan is an extremely dense and fast spinning sphere of your own chakra, or spiritual energy, that you hold in your palm. It's a highly destructive jutsu that takes a lot of practice to master."

One of his students was staring intently at his own hand as if he was trying to conjure the blue sphere. "It isn't something you can just make appear. What I'm about to show you are the steps on how to make it," explained Ryder.

Ryder grabbed a water balloon of the same size of his Rasengan and held it in the palm of his hand. "First, I want you to focus on spinning and rotating the water inside to the point where the balloon pops." The water in Ryder's balloon began to spin and spike from the inside of the balloon. Within a few seconds, the balloon popped.

"Next, you'll grab one of these rubber balls of the same size." Ryder grabbed a rubber ball of the same size from a box next to him and held it in his palm. The rubber ball began shaking violently as it took on different shapes. "This is how you will generate the power in a Rasengan." The rubber ball then popped as its pieces flew in all directions with a few almost hitting some of the students.

"Finally, you need to learn how to control its power and shape. This step includes a normal balloon," Ryder explained. He reached into a separate box and pulled out a blue balloon the same size as the other balls and balloons.

"I want you to do the same thing," he said as the rubber balloon began stretching and taking on odd shapes. "But, you can't pop it. You will have to learn to compress the power within the balloon." The balloon sat in his palm contorting its shape without popping. The students watched on in amazement.

"Okay, now I want every ninja and z-fighter to grab a balloon and begin trying to pop it," Ryder said to everyone. "Everyone else, begin working on building up your spiritual energy, reiatsu, soul energy, or whatever you use. You'll do this by doing those kind of attacks over and over again. Grab a partner and get to work."

Ryder walked over to Cam and said, "Follow me. Let's see if we can figure this out for you." The two began walking away from the class and over into the forest behind them. Within the forest was a circular area that had trees either cut down or blown away from attacks.

"A buddy of mine will be here in few seconds to see if he can help us along with learning this. We've never thought of something like other spiritual energies learning other spiritual energy's techniques." Ryder turned to face Cam.

"I guess first things first. Do you know what kind of Nen user you are?" he asked. Cam shook his head.

"Okay, give me a second," Ryder said back. He reached inside his bag and pulled out a jar. Ryder walked over to a close by river and filled it up with water. From a nearby tree, he took a leaf and placed it on top of the water. The leaf sat afloat, dancing as the wind brushed by it.

"Here, hold this in your hands." Ryder handed the jar to Cam who firmly grasped it and stared at the leaf.

"Now, close your eyes and focus on the jar. See the jar full of water with the small leaf sitting on top of it." Ryder waited a few seconds. "Now, picture yourself pouring your very essence, your Nen into it."

Keeping his eyes closed, Cam did as he was told. His face began to turn red as he concentrated harder and harder. After about a minute, the water began to turn an orange color, and sweet smell came about.

"Good job, Cam. You can open your eyes now," said Ryder. Cam opened them and they immediately widened.

"Wow," he said softly. He looked up at Ryder and asked, "What's this mean?"

"Well," said Ryder studying the water. "Since it changed colors, that means you have an Emitter's power. However," Ryder said as he leaned in a little closer. "Do you smell that?"

Cam nodded.

"Take a sip of the water in the jar. See if it tastes the same or if it's just a new smell."

Cam grabbed the leaf and tossed it away. He held the jar up to his mouth and slowly drank a little bit of the water. Quickly, his eyes widened as if shocked, and he brought the jar of water down from his mouth. "I don't distinctly know the taste, but it's really sweet!"

Impressed, Ryder said to him, "Wow, this means that you are an Emitter and a Transmuter." Seeing how Cam had no idea what he was saying, Ryder chuckled then continued explaining.

"With your powers of an Emitter, you will have an easy time separating aura from their body. Then with a the power of a Transmuter, you can mimic the properties of an element or something else with your aura. For instance, you can make your aura look and feel like fire, water, or even electricity. This also means that you can make your aura look and feel like chakra," Ryder explained to Cam.

"Damn. This is badass," said Cam. "So, do you think that I'll be able to perform the Rasengan?"

Ryder nodded and said, "I think that you could do that and even improve upon it. You don't even need your Arrancar powers to do this. Now there are a lot of Arrancar attacks that would be beneficial to know, but you have two great Nen abilities. Especially when paired with one another."

Just then, a male with flippy, brown hair who looked about twenty jumped down from a nearby branch. He was a little shorter than six feet tall and was in great shape. He wore Jordan's, black gym shorts, and a white and red t-shirt that had a Nike logo on the front. "I see you're a Nen user," he said.

"And an Arrancar," replied Cam proudly.

"And I could still kick your ass," said the stranger. "Is this the guy you want me to teach?" he asked.

Ryder nodded then looked at Cam. "This is Austin Evans. He a good friend and we've been on a few missions with each other before. He's a Nen user too. He's a Transmitter, Conjuror, and a Manipulator. Also, I've trained him to become an expert swordsman. He's going to teach you how to use Nen. There's no one better here that can do this, so listen to him and do whatever he says."

Cam nodded then said, "Got it. Sorry about that, Austin. I shouldn't be too cocky."

Austin smiled and laughed saying, "Don't sweat it man. All we got to work on is your ability to make those statements mean something now!"

Ryder looked at Austin and said, "I've got to go check on the students and see how they're doing. Don't hurt him too badly." Austin gave him a thumb up then Ryder vanished into the trees leaving them behind to train.

After about one hour of being away, all the other students were still working on their water balloon. They were able to just barely make the balloon shake and change shapes. Across the field, Ryder could see someone with blonde hair wearing an orange, unzipped pullover sitting on a tree stump talking to one of the students.

Ryder walked over to the two and said, "How's it going Master Colby? Is there something I can help you with?"

Colby turned to face Ryder and said, "I see you're trying to teach them the Rasengan. That's a pretty powerful jutsu."

"Never hurts to have it in your arsenal," responded Ryder.

"Can you do it?" asked Colby. The student working on popping his balloon chuckled.

Ryder smiled at that reaction and said, "Of course." Ryder held out his palm and blue sphere of dense chakra appeared. Slowly, the blue ball shrank down to where it was about two inches in diameter. The student looked on in amazement.

'How could he do that so effortlessly,' he thought.

Ryder turned to a stump that was about five feet tall and twenty yards away. He glanced at Colby then back at the stump then threw it at the stump he was aiming for. Completely shocked that Ryder had thrown his Rasengan, Colby jolted up and watched as the Rasengan disappeared.

"Ha! How can you say that you can do that jutsu when –," but Colby stopped talking when all of the sudden something collided with the stump absolutely tearing it to shreds and causing a moderate explosion.

Ryder smirked at Colby.

"Ah, I see," Colby responded. "You mixed it with a chakra nature that made it disappear," Colby said then giving a little laugh. "You never fail to amuse me." Colby began walking back to the base with his hands in his pockets.

He turned around and said to Ryder, "Remember, you're making them into soldiers for us. Don't forget that." Colby disappeared from Ryder's sight when he finished that sentence.

Ryder looked back at the student who just so happened to pop his water balloon right then. "Hey! Good job Tucker," Ryder said to him. "Now go get a rubber ball."

These training exercises happened for a continuous four weeks. Through the help of Ryder, a large portion of them could perform the Rasengan now. A small few of them even learned the Chidori as well. Ryder walked around the training grounds satisfied with the progress all of them had made. The majority even looked up to Ryder as their own Master or Sensei because of how understanding and nice he was to them. Along with that, he had taught them all many jutsus and techniques that they all could use.

One of the students, after completing his Rasengan training, felt a weird pulse in right hand. His fingertips to be specific. He didn't know what to make of it. He wasn't sure if it was dangerous or what, but he knew that his Sensei, Ryder, could handle whatever it was. He could see him walking around the training ground about fifty meters away, so he walked up to him.

"What's going on, DP?" Ryder asked.

"Well, after learning the Rasengan," DP began to say. "I've been feeling something pulsing in my hand towards my fingertips. I don't know what it is."

A little confused, Ryder said to him, "Here. Place your hand on mine and let me see if I can sense anything." Ryder held out his hand towards DP.

DP placed his fingertips on Ryder's palm.

Suddenly, Ryder saw a bright flash that completely blinded his vision. All he saw was white.

Slowly the white faded and a dark and ominous scene appeared. Ryder could see a hard, rocky ground with a few boulders around. He could feel a steady rain fall from the cloudy sky. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning lit up the sky and the scene around him.

He could see a multitude of bodies lying lifeless on the ground. Two people, a stranger with a green cloak of energy around him and the other stranger having a red lightsaber with a red smoke that looked like a large rib cage constantly around him, were fighting a man wearing white pants and a white button-down shirt. None of them looked familiar.

The two seemed like they could not get solid or effective hit on the man wearing all white. The man in white's laugh crackled loudly as the other two began tiring out. Another lightning bolt cracked causing another white flash that blinded Ryder for a few moments.

This time, when his vision returned he saw the stranger that wielded the red lightsaber standing confidently next to the man dressed in a white suit. They were in the middle of a green field with two others standing face to face with them. One of them was the other stranger that was fighting the man in the white suit. All of them nodded, then they turned and headed in separate directions. The stranger with the man in a white suit walked inside of a space ship, and the other two walked towards a group of about ten others. Behind them was a large building that looked like an abandoned hospital with a large dirt area right next to it. A bright flash of white light blinded Ryder once more.

This time when his vision came back to him, he was down on a knee with his hand rubbing his eyes.

"Master! Are you okay?" asked DP over and over again.

Ryder slowly raised up to his feet and said, "Yeah, I just got really light headed."

"Was it because of me?" DP asked.

"No, I just need to go rest," he said rubbing his head.

Just then, Austin appeared and said, "Don't worry DP, I've got him. Go back to training." DP did as was told, and Austin began walking with Ryder back towards the door that led into the base.

"What was that about?" asked Austin.

"I don't know," Ryder said. "I think I just need some rest though."

"Yeah, you've been going at it teaching these kids. I mean damn. Learning the Rasengan in a month. That's impressive enough," said Austin helping Ryder into the base and through the hallways to his room.

"By the way, Austin," said Ryder. "I'll be leaving for another mission in a week or so. Watch over the students while I'm gone. Try and teach them a few things. If anything bad happens, keep them safe and out of harms way."

"Got it man. No need to worry about them," Austin replied. The door to Ryder's room slid open, and Ryder flopped onto his bed. Austin left the room quickly afterwards.

When the door slid closed, Ryder sat up, crossed his legs, and shut his eyes. He figured that what he saw was connected to the Force, so he knew meditation was the best way to decipher what he saw.


	29. Chapter 28: The Exodus

**Chapter 28: The Exodus**

Six days had passed since Ryder had his episode on the training field. He had spent most of his time meditating either in his room or a meditation chamber inside the indoor training facility. The Exodus would be any day now. All he had to do was check the phone he had been using to communicate with the US. The goal for Ryder was to try and recruit some of his students to join him in the Exodus, but he could feel how dedicated they were to the Council. However, there were about ten of them that he could feel that they didn't agree with the Council and how they worked.

It was a Friday morning Ryder woke up to his US phone vibrating loudly on his wooden night stand. He turned to it, picked it up, and reached into the drawer grabbing a translator. He opened the translator and then the phone.

"Impisi lapha," he said sitting up in his bed.

A voice came through the phone that said, "Eksodusi. Sishiya ikhaya lakho ngo-2 ekuseni. Phuma emva kwemizuzu emibili." The call faded out and a loud beep was heard afterward telling Ryder that they had hung up.

Ryder put the phone back on the night stand then looked at the translator. It had translated the coded conversation to, "Wolf here."

Then a new message below that read, "Exodus. We leave your home at 2am. Exit after two minutes."

Ryder quickly turned off the translator and put it back into his drawer.

He took his normal communicator and sent a message to the other shadows saying, "Meet me in our office in twenty minutes."

Ryder swung his feet out of his bed and ran to his bathroom.

_So, the exodus is in the morning. That was unexpected._

"I know. Pretty inconvenient," replied Ryder.

He turned on the shower and hopped in. Using the Force, he could quickly shampooed his hair and washed his body at the same time. The shower was definetly on the top of the soon to be most missed about this place list. It had nice pressure, and there was a nob that controlled how the water came out. Ryder's favorite was the one that could massage him.

He got out and dried himself off using a new jutsu of his. Since he found out that he could use water, wind, and fire jutsu, Ryder developed a wind jutsu that dried all the water off him within seconds. It also cooled his body down so that he wouldn't sweat after the hot shower.

Being dry, Ryder walked to his closet. Not knowing if he was going to sleep tonight since the exodus is at two in the morning, he thought battle gear would be the best bet for today.

Ryder put on his long white socks and his ninja pants that went a little past his knees. He taped his shins up to where his pants stopped. He put on a black t-shirt then slid on a red, worn-out mandalorian chest armor piece. He tapped his right thigh and strapped a pouch with kunai in it around the tape. Next, Ryder clipped his two lightsabers to his belt.

"Time to go," he muttered to himself.

_You're forgetting shoes._

"Glad I have you on my side… Anakin?" replied Ryder. His "Force Jinchuriki" had been really nice to him as of recently.

_My persona changes with your state of mind and emotions. That's why I've been more of Anakin than Vader._

"I guess that makes sense," Ryder said confused.

Ryder walked to the wall that had all his shoes and began deciding on the pair he was going to wear.

'Not the Nikes. Not the boots. Hmmmm. I'll just go with the ninja sandals,' Ryder decided in his head.

Ryder walked out of his room and few doors down the hallway to the Shadow's office. Along the way a few of his students said hello and good morning to him, so he waved them off giving them the proper response. "Get to class."

Ryder reached the office door and put in the numeric code that opened the door. It slid open revealing that he was last of the Seven Shadows to show up.

"Good, everyone's here," said Ryder walking to the front of his desk. He leaned against it and looked at everyone.

A few were yawning, and everyone else looked half asleep.

Ryder clapped loudly then said, "The Exodus will take place at two in the morning on the dot. Tomorrow morning. They said that they are leaving here after two minutes which means that they are probably jumping to mach speed after two minutes."

"What are they going to be coming in?" asked Murdoch.

"They'll bring a cargo ship. They're hoping that we can bring as many students as possible. And right now, I have about ten," replied Ryder.

Nero stood up and asked, "What happens if they try and stop us?"

Ryder looked him in the eyes and said, "We fight back and make sure the transport ship jumps with the Rogue Shadow in it."

Everyone nodded as if they understood that it was their job to make sure that neither ship is shot out of the sky.

"So, everyone pack up everything that you need to take. I'll stop by everyone's room and use a transformation jutsu to make things easier for us to sneak out things to the ship. Any questions?"

No one raised their hand until Blair's hand rose. "Should we take anything of theirs. Like ships or books?"

"Oh, yes," said Ryder. "If you know of any texts or holocrons try and take them, but DO NOT get caught. Don't worry about ships."

Blair nodded in response.

"Okay, now go pack and get ready," Ryder said walking around to the other side of his desk. Everyone left the office and went straight to their room.

Ryder sat in his office chair and yawned as he put his head on his hands.

His mind flashed back to the vision he had. Dismembered bodies laying all over the ground. The sense of despair the two felt while fighting that man in the white suit.

Who was he?

How was he that powerful?

Ryder shook his head and opened the bottom right drawer to his desk. After taking out a stack of papers, Ryder grabbed a red and blue holocron. They were larger than the other holocrons he had opened before. He hadn't opened either one of them, but he knew that now was not the right time. Ryder grabbed a nearby backpack and put the two holocrons in its biggest pouch.

Ryder then pulled out his communicator and sent a message to the few students that wanted to go with him, but he slowly put the communicator back into his backpack.

'All they're going to be is fodder for the fight,' he thought.

_But, they'll have a choice. They won't have one if they stay._

Ryder took a deep breath because he knew that Anakin was right. They need to come.

Suddenly a knock came from his door.

Ryder stood up from his chair and walked to the door curious who was on the other side. He waved it open and on the other side stood three students from his class: John, Sim, and Victor.

"Master," said Victor. "We want to come along."

Confused on how they knew about the plan to leave, Ryder asked the three, "What do you mean?"

Sim stepped forward summoning a leather back book then flipped it to a certain page. "I acquired a telepathy power, Master. I only told these two about your plan to leave. I swear."

Ryder slammed his palm onto his face and let out a large breath of air. "Hurry up and come in." A slow rage coming from letting a novice like Sim read him began to boil inside of him.

Once the three students walked inside, Ryder turned to them with his Sharingan activated and placed them under a genjutsu.

The students saw their surroundings slowly take on a red hue. The walls suddenly began to ooze what looked like blood. Within a second, the three felt themselves frozen in front of a large grassland that had a small lake that was red and black.

A flock of ravens flew past the heads of Sim, Victor, and John then grouped together right in front of them. The birds merged together and formed their master, Ryder.

"Don't ever go behind my back again. Next time you won't be in a genjutsu," Ryder said with wrath in his voice.

His eyes burned with the redness of his Sharingan. Before any of his students could speak, Ryder summoned a tsunami that came from the nearby lake, and it crashed upon the students drowning them all.

Ryder released his sharingan genjutsu, and the three students immediately slumped over gasping for air.

Sam looked up at his master with beads of sweat rolling down his face. "What the hell was that for," asked Sim obviously pissed off.

"First off, I'm pissed at myself for letting a novice nen user get inside my head, and then you go and tell people of our plan?! We could die if you told people that are moles for the Council!" Ryder paused and turned to Victor and John. "And this means that if either of you report us, I'll have to kill you. I can't let this mission fail."

"Calm down, Master," said Victor trying to catch his breath. "We have no intension in ratting y'all out or ditching you. We want to leave because this place just turns people into selfish monsters and tools for war."

Ryder sighed, rubbed his head and said, "Sit down. All of you." He pointed at a couch that was in front of his desk, and the students walked to it and sat down. With his Sharingan still activated, Ryder sat down behind his desk, folded his hands, and rested his elbows on its surface.

"We are to be waiting for a ship to show up at two in the morning, so meet in the hanger at twenty minutes before two," explained Ryder. "Only bring a backpack that contains the absolute essentials. Nothing more. When we get on the cargo ship, be ready to be strapped in and go mach-speed instantly. The ship will only be here for two minutes. If someone notices us and a fight happens, stay put. One of us will handle it. Our objective is to get as many of y'all out of here as quickly as possible."

Ryder looked at the three students who sat in front of him nodding. "Victor, make sure you bring your sword. I know how forgetful you are."

Ryder looked down at his watch and saw that it said to himself, "Four-thirty." Looking back at his students he commanded them, "Now go and pack your stuff."

Victor, Sim, and John got up and left the room heading to their rooms to gather the items they planned on taking. Once they left, Ryder decided to go to the hanger to make sure the Rogue Shadow was ready to leave.

Nero and Murdoch were walking to the dining hall to get dinner when they were stopped by a man in a white lab coat.

"Dr. van Hoosier. What a pleasant surprise," said Murdoch. He was surprised to see one of the Council members casually walking in the hallways. They didn't usually mingle with the students.

"Yes, indeed," replied the doctor.

Dr. van Hoosier looked about thirty and had black hair and glasses. He was wearing black pants and a black shirt under his lab coat. "I saw Ryder taking boxes to the hanger. Are y'all going on a mission?"

Murdoch and Nero exchanged a quick glance at each other. "I think he's just restocking some supplies that we used on our last mission," said Nero.

"Quite strange to be doing that about a month after the previous mission," commented Dr. van Hoosier.

Murdoch quickly butted in and said, "I guess he just forgot a few things."

Dr. van Hoosier didn't say anything for a few seconds. All he did was look at the two in front of him.

"Tell him to come see me tomorrow morning," said the doctor. He then walked in between Nero and Murdoch and marched down the hall.

Nero and Murdoch immediately changed directions and went to the hanger to meet up with Ryder and tell him about their run in with Dr. van Hoosier.

"Do you think he suspects the exodus?" Murdoch asked Nero.

"No way. We haven't done anything that warrants suspicion for that. However, we should probably keep an eye out for him."

The two entered the hanger, and walked over to the Rogue Shadow. "Ryder!" yelled out Murdoch.

There was no reply as well with no sign of him being there.

Blake, the hanger manager, walked over to them and said, "He left about thirty minutes ago."

"Do you know where he was going?" asked Nero.

"Nope. Didn't care what he doing," responded Blake as he walked back over to his table.

"Let's go check his office," suggested Murdoch.

Nero nodded and they began walking there.

Upon reaching the office, they walked in and saw Ryder sitting at his desk writing something. They told him about their encounter with Dr. van Hoosier.

"Wow, I didn't even notice him watching me," said Ryder shocked. "We're gonna have to be careful tonight. Especially since we have two more students coming with us."

"What?! When did this happen?" asked Nero.

"About an hour ago. Sim told two of his friends: Victor and John. I told them they could come after I made sure they weren't spies for the Council," Ryder explained. "They're strong too, so it isn't that bad."

"Shit," said Murdoch. "What if that's how van Hoosier might be on to us? One of them could be a spy for him."

Ryder pondered that for a moment. "I don't think so. I would've found out, and van Hoosier would've been more confrontational than what he was." Nero and Murdoch stood there thinking over the possibility. "Anyways, let's just focus on making sure we're ready to leave for now."

Nero nodded and Murdoch said, "Got it, boss." The two left Ryder's office and went to finish packing their belongings.

*BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP BEEP*

Ryder rolled over to turn off his annoying alarm clock, except he accidentally broke it. He didn't mind that though. It was his last night staying in that room. The face of the clock, with only a few cracks, read "1:00 am."

'The ship shows up in one hour. That's more than enough time,' he thought.

Ryder, already dressed to leave, threw off his sheets and began putting on his black socks and shoes. He was wearing a black long-sleeve shirt with a black, short-sleeve hoodie over the shirt. He was also wearing black tights with black short on top of those.

Next to his bed, Ryder had put two backpacks and his black belt with his two lightsabers. He put on the belt and attached a lightsaber to each of his hips. The backpack that contained scrolls and holocrons, he threw onto his back. His other backpack which contained spare clothes, he threw over one of his shoulders.

He was ready to go.

It was 1:08 am.

Ryder opened his door and peaked his head outside to make sure no one was watching. Then reaching out with the Force, he checked to make sure that no one was around that he couldn't see. Everyone was asleep.

"Anakin," said Ryder within his head.

_What is it? I was meditating._

"Can you be a continuous lookout for me? Keep meditating, but feel the surroundings with the Force."

_Only if I can help you fight if you get caught._

"That's not going to happen."

_Promise._

"Fine. Just keep watch."

Ryder slowly shut his door and began walking towards the hanger. To get there, he had to turn four corners and walk down five hallways. Each having the possibility of having a student, teacher, or Council member walking in that hallway.

Luckily, everyone was in their room, so Ryder didn't run into any trouble while making his way to the hanger doors. Finally, he arrived at the doors. Here was his first challenge.

Behind the doors, Blake, the hanger manager, and three other guards were patrolling the area. Ryder had to deal with them before the others could arrive. Ryder lifted his hood over his head and raised a black, cloth face mask over his mouth and nose.

Ryder opened the doors and walked a few steps forward. Blake turned to the doors and yelled out, "Who are you?! Take off the mask!"

Ryder didn't move or talk back.

Blake motioned the guards to walk up to the unknown man and reveal who was behind the mask. As the guards began to walk towards Ryder cautiously, black armor began to form around Blake.

_That's his berserker armor. Do it now!_

Before the helmet could be formed, Ryder opened his eyes and revealed a deep crimson Mangekyo Sharingan.

Blake and the other guards staggered then fell to the ground.

Ryder quickly deactivated his Sharingan and began tying up the guards and Blake. After doing so, Ryder looked down at his watch. It read, "1:32 am."

Nero stopped by Murdoch's and Katie's door before going to the hanger to make sure they were ready. He knocked on Murdoch's door lightly three times.

Murdoch cracked the door open to see who it was. Upon seeing Nero, Murdoch opened the door and exited the room.

"Hurry, we need to get Katie. Her room is on the way to the hanger," said Nero walking slowly down the hall. He looked down at his watch. It read, "1:30."

Ryder put his bags inside his room on the Rogue Shadow.

"Let's see," he said to himself. "There are sixteen of us including me. We're definetly going to have to take two other starships." Ryder hurried and checked out the other starships.

Two ships really stuck out to him. On was long and flat with wings that folded out like an ETA-2 Jedi Starfighter. Its name was, the Scimitar.

The other ship looked like the body of a y-wing ship. It was a Lethisk-class armed freighter. "These will do just fine," he said to himself.

As Ryder was walking back to the Rogue Shadow, the hanger doors opened and in walked Nero, Murdoch, Katie, Blair, Hunter, and Skibo. "Are the students here yet?" asked Nero.

"No," replied Ryder. "They should be here any minute though." Ryder looked down at his watch. It read, "1:42 am."

Ryder looked back up at the Shadows and said, "We're taking the Scimitar and the Lethisk armed freighter too. Nero, you fly the Scimitar. Katie, you take the Rogue Shadow, and I'll take the Lethisk. Everyone else will be divided into the three ships. Just as he finished saying that, nine students scurried into the hanger.

"Hurry up. Y'all are five minutes late. Murdoch, Hunter, Victor, Sam, and Javier, you five follow Katie into the Rogue Shadow. She will be flying you five to the transport ship. Skibo, John, Avery, and Connor. You four will be with Nero in the Scimitar. Blair, Sim, Jude, and Dylan. You four will be with me in the Lethisk over there." Ryder pointed to an old, heavy-looking freighter about thirty yards away.

Ryder looked down at his watch. It read, "1:48 am."

"Everyone get ready to leave. Go get in your ship and strap in. Katie is going to leave first. Followed by Nero, and I will leave last. The transport ship will be here in twelve minutes. Once we get the hanger doors open, expect company," explained Ryder.

"How are we going to open the hanger doors?" asked Katie.

"I'll take care of that," said Ryder. "It won't be a problem. Also, once you get in your ship, turn on your communicators and set them to frequency: 1634."

Everyone nodded.

The students were loading up on their designated ship while Ryder and the Shadows were wishing everyone luck. Ryder walked over to Katie and gave her a big hug.

"Don't worry. I'll see you in a few minutes up on the transport," he told her.

She lifted her head off his shoulder and whispered in his ear, "Last one there's the rotten egg." She giggled then released Ryder from her hug.

Ryder smiled and said, "Game on, girl."

Everyone rushed to their ships. They officially had seven minutes until the US transport ship would appear above them. Ryder turned on the power to the ship, but didn't start the engines. He turned on his communicator and turned the dial until a digital number showed that he was on frequency 1634.

"This is Typhon. Checking in, over," said Ryder.

"Cthulhu and company are ready," Nero confirmed.

"This is Tartarus checking in. Ready to get out of here," Katie finished.

"Good. We have one minute until the transport appears. Everyone, prime your thrusters," Ryder commanded.

Ryder nodded at Blair letting him know to flip the switch to prime the Lethisk's thrusters.

Ryder looked at the big hanger doors and saw a large red button to the right of them. He knew that this was how to open them.

He closed his eyes and calmed his mind. He reached out his hand and picked up a wooden training sword with the Force. With precision and speed, Ryder had the wooden sword up against the red button pushing up against it. Within a few seconds, the button was pressed the hanger doors flew open.

Ryder picked up the communicator and said, "Katie, you're good to go."

Inside the academy, Dr. van Hoosier woke up to the noise of what sounded like engines revving and the hanger doors opening. Muttering under his breath, he said, "I'll be damned if it's Ryder and his gang."

Quickly, van Hoosier rolled out of bed, threw on his lab coat and shoes, and stormed to the closest exit. He found himself standing on the training grounds looking up to see three starships hovering above the academy. Seeing the Rogue Shadow meant that it was definetly Ryder, but what were they doing. To get a better vantage point, Dr. van Hoosier ran up the side of the academy using chakra then leaped onto the roof.

Right as he landed on the roof, a smaller sized Republic transport ship appeared in the sky. Immediately following its appearance, the three ships quickly accelerated to the opening where ships could fly into its hanger bay. "Those sons of bitches are trying to desert us," he said looking up at the ships. "And they're stealing two of our ships!"

Dr. van Hoosier's eyes swirled and turned into a deep crimson color as blue chakra formed around him and developed into a blue skeleton that quickly conjured armor.

"Ryder! Someone's noticed that we've left," said Blair pointing down at Dr. van Hoosier on the roof of the academy.

Ryder looked down and immediately realized what was down there. "Damnit."

He grabbed the communicator and said, "Everyone. We have company. It's Dr. van Hoosier. The Eye of Horus. He's able to use the Mangekyo Sharingan and is currently using a Susanoo."

"We just landed in the transport. I'll instruct everyone on where to go and make sure they get strapped in. You and Nero can hold him off," said Katie through the communicator.

As Katie finished speaking, Ryder saw a body jump from the Scimitar heading straight for the Susanoo. "Damnit, Nero," muttered Ryder to himself. He turned to Blair and said, "I'm gonna need you to take over and fly this into the transport."

"What are you going to do," asked Blair?

Ryder pressed a few buttons, and the loading ramp opened and extended a few yards out. "I'm going down there to make sure everyone can get to the transport safely," said Ryder into the communications system.

He got up and hurried to the ramp. Looking down, Ryder saw blue arrows made of the Susanoo chakra fly past their ship and luckily missing the transport ship.

"Here goes nothing," Ryder said bending his knees then jumping.

"So, you're the first to try and stop me, Nero? How pitiful. It would've been fun to experiment on you," said Dr. van Hoosier with a sinister grin. The blue Susanoo unsheathed a blue sword and began swinging it at Nero.

Nero's four bright red kagunes burst from his lower back and propelled Nero into the air towards the Susanoo. His speed and unique style of mobility made it hard to hit him. His kagunes also had a lot more volume to them than when he used them on planet, Luminous. They were long and thick. Being a ghoul, Nero was a lot faster than Dr. van Hoosier, but the Susanoo was too strong for his kagune to really pack a punch for it. However, he was making van Hoosier go after him instead of the ship.

After a few seconds of fighting, Ryder landed next to Nero and said, "Keep attacking him. I have a plan."

Nero nodded and continued jumping around and slamming his dense kagunes into the Susanoo in hopes that it would crack.

Ryder held out his hand, and a sphere of dense, blue chakra began swirling in his palm. As he activated his Sharingan and using the Force to draw in more power, the Rasengan began to get larger and larger. The ball of blue chakra was now about five meters in diameter. However, to make the destructive power increase, Ryder began to infuse his Force Lightning into the Giant Rasengan.

Fighting off the nuisance that was Nero, Dr. van Hoosier saw the Rasengan expand out of the corner of his eye. He turned his head to Ryder and said to himself, "This is going to be a problem."

Van Hoosier faked out Nero and hit him off the roof and into the ground of the training area creating a small crater. He then focused his attention on the approaching Ryder.

Dr. van Hoosier readied his sword to block the Rasengan as Ryder began to thrust it towards the rib cage of the Susanoo.

The two connected and violent winds and bolts of lightning were produced due to the clash of the two powers. It took about two seconds for the Rasengan to break past the sword, but the real challenge was going to be the body of the Susanoo. Just as how Ryder was putting his all into breaking through the Susanoo, Dr. van Hoosier was using his all to keep the Susanoo from cracking.

Over his communicator, Ryder was able to get ahold of Nero and said, "Go ahead and get to the ship. I'll be there right after I break through this thing."

Instead of immediately following orders, Nero froze there because of the thought of leaving his best friend and captain alone to fight was against is way of fighting.

"Go!" yelled Ryder to Nero from on top of the roof.

The yell was enough for Nero to snap out of his trance. Nero made his kagunes grab onto the side of the academy, and they immediately tightened. Jumping forward, the tension sent Nero directly towards the transport ship that was waiting for them.

_Just let me know when, Ryder._

Ryder chuckled and said, "I almost forgot. How about now?"

Suddenly, Ryder could feel the Force flow through him like never before. He felt stronger, more aware, and more in tune with the Force and his own chakra. Ryder could feel his body change too. His whole body had gained muscle, and he was toned.

_Use your passion to save your friends. Use your emotions; they will make your attack stronger!_

Remembering the good times that he had with his friends, a sense of pride in them and love for them grew within. His Mangekyo burned bright, but it was slowly turning orange and yellow instead of red.

The words of Master Korvin appeared in his head. "It's okay to dip into the power of the light and dark side. As long as you remain in the middle at the end, you will be fine."

Yelling, Ryder's new power and emotions turned the Rasengan's core red and the lightning was crackling more violently around it. Ryder thrusted the Rasengan as hard as he could, and the Susanoo finally gave in and cracked just a little bit. This small crack was enough for a large amount of the Rasengan's energy to enter the Susanoo and hit the crazed doctor.

After using up a large portion of his chakra and energy, Ryder slid back on the roof, and after taking damage from the Rasengan, Dr. van Hoosier slid back on the roof scuffed and slightly bleeding from the head.

'What power did he just acquire,' though the doctor. 'And what was that presence just then? That anger.'

"We have to go," said Rodan from the transport ship.

Breathing heavily, Ryder responded, "I'm coming." He paused for a moment then spoke again. "If worse comes to worst, leave me."

Rodan understood the sacrifice that Ryder was potentially going to have to make and how hard of a choice it would be, so he simply said, "I understand."

Back down on the roof, the two fighters, breathing heavily, were staring at each other. "I'm assuming that they'll need to leave any second, and I know you can feel all the other council members and students running through the hallways right now. It'd be a shame if they made it out here," said the Eye of Horus.

Ryder knew he was right. The ship needed to leave right now.

_I have a little more power for you. _

"Give it," demanded Ryder.

"Don't think for too long," said van Hoosier. He noticed that Ryder's physique hadn't changed back to normal yet. The power flowing from him was terrifyingly tremendous.

The doctor scoffed at him and held back his right arm. Suddenly, a clearish white sphere appeared around his fist. "I hope that transport can survive the power of the Quake Quake Fruit!"

Ryder could feel the incredible destructive magnitude that was reverberating from it, so he began to summon all his chakra and bring in the Force. Red chakra began to swirl around his feet as he crouched.

With a wink, Dr. van Hoosier said, "Good-bye ship!" The doctor threw the white sphere towards the ship.

Ryder used his chakra and the remaining power from Anakin to jump at superhuman speeds to the point where he was in between the ship and the orb.

"So fast," mutter Dr. van Hoosier to himself.

"Go!" yelled Ryder through his communicator as he activated his Mangekyo Sharingan and releasing his orangish red Susanoo that had more armor to it now.

The transport ship prepared to jump to mach speed as they saw the orb collide with Ryder causing a massive explosion and tremor. The orangish red chakra of the greatest defensive jutsu disappeared.

A single body broke through the cloud of smoke as it fell to the ground.

Rodan looked with a sense of dread and sorrow. The student that showed tremendous promise as he walked into the academy. The ex-mercenary that sacrificed his life to perform reconnaissance on the deadliest organization in the universe was falling towards his death.

He saw people start to burst out from the academy. All of them followed the lead of the doctor on the roof in activating their powers, so that they could bring down the transport ship.

Rodan reached for the mach speed throttle on his right and pushed it forward barely missing a multitude of attacks that would bring down that ship.

The clock on the dash board read, "2:03."

While in mach-speed, Murdoch walked over to where Nero was sitting. He sat down next to him and placed his hand on his shoulder. "He's not going to die. We'll get him back," he said partially trying to convince himself.

_The next chapter is going to be a little dark, but I really like it. I hope you liked this chapter, and let me know what you thought about it. Don't forget to check out my poll on my profile. Until next time….._

_ ~Aldon_


	30. Chapter 29: Broken Path

_**Disclaimer:**__ I do not own any of the ideas or concepts presented/used in this chapter or in the entire story. They are used for entertainment. Please support the original releases._

**Chapter 29: Broken Path**

Ryder opened his eyes to a bright light that hung right above him. He tried to sit up and move his arms, but leather straps bound his entire body to a chair. Along with straps around his arms and legs, Ryder noticed cuffs around both his wrists and ankles. The straps were strong. At full strength Ryder couldn't break free from them or use the Force to undo them. Ryder sighed as he laid back down frustrated.

'I wonder if they ended up getting away,' he thought.

The sound of a door sliding open came from behind him. "Well look who's awake, Gambino," said one of the voices from behind.

No one responded, but Ryder could tell that there were two others with him because of the footsteps.

One by one, people walked in front of him. The first man wore an orange jacket and had blonde hair. Colby. The second person was tall and fit with midnight black hair. The head of the Council of Anubis, Gambino. Lastly was the man in the lab coat, Dr. van Hoosier.

"Now, now, Ryder. Why did you have to go and do that? I mean it doesn't really hinder us. It just makes us look bad to our allies," said Gambino putting his hands on Ryder's left arm and leaning over him.

"Those kids knew what you were turning them into," said Ryder." Just little war robots to be u—."

Colby punched Ryder in the stomach causing him to cough up spit and some blood.

Dr. van Hoosier began saying, "Looks like my Quake-Quake Fruit powers really did a number on you."

Ryder never realized that the Quake-Quake Fruit was that powerful.

"There's a lot you don't know about us," Colby continued. He held out his hand, and suddenly, Ryder's head began shaking. Ryder's screams echoed throughout the entire academy as blood rolled from his eyes like tears. Colby moved his hand away, and the pain Ryder felt subsided along with the shaking of his head.

Ryder took a few deep breathes and said, "So you can use the Force too?"

"Like he said," Gambino told him. "There are a lot of things that you don't know about us."

Leaning away from Ryder, Gambino looked at Dr. van Hoosier and Colby and said, "Can I have a minute with our dear friend here?"

"Have as long as you want," said van Hoosier as he and Colby started walking to the door.

Once the two left the room, Gambino raised the back of Ryder's chair up to where they could make eye contact. "Shall we get down to business?" asked Gambino.

Ryder didn't say a word.

"Alright then. How long have you been a spy for the US?" he asked.

Once again Ryder didn't say a word.

"The whole time? When you came back from your last mission?"

Ryder remained speechless.

"You're only making this harder on yourself," said Gambino.

Gambino began weaving hand signs. Right before saying the name of the jutsu, Gambino said, "You know you're closer to being dead that fully healed right now? This could kill you."

Again, nothing from his captive.

"Fine. Chidori Stream!" yelled out Gambino.

Lightning shot out both of Gambino's palms ricocheting off the ceiling and walls. Ryder was left defenseless as strong bolts of lightning hit him continuously for around five seconds. Gambino closed his hands and the lightning ceased.

Gambino walked up to Ryder who was now smoking because of the intense heat of the lightning bolts and said, "This is your last chance to say something or else I might just kill you."

A soft voice came from Ryder. Gambino leaned in closer to hear what Ryder was saying and heard, "Eat a dick."

Gambino took a step back, smiled then said, "I'm gonna enjoy this."

He began weaving more hand seals and said, "Earth Style: Ultra-Added-Weight Rock Technique."

Nothing as of scenery changed. Ryder only noticed more confidence in Gambino, now. He walked next to Ryder, raised his fist and slowly set it on Ryder's knee cap.

Suddenly cracks and shatters could be heard in the room and the bones in Ryder's knee were shattered to pieces from that one gentle touch. Ryder screamed bloody murder as the restrained kept him from moving much at all.

"How about some more you piece of shit?" asked Gambino gleefully.

On the other side of the window, Colby, Dr. van Hoosier, Strike Len, and Stacy (aka Serqet) stood there and watched as Gambino gently punched him about ten more times in various locations. There was about a one minute pause where it looked like Gambino was talking to Ryder.

"What do you think he's talking to him about?" asked Strike Len.

"Could be quite literally anything," said Colby in response.

Right after Colby finished speaking, Gambino reared back his fist and punched Ryder as hard as he could in the stomach. There was no movement from the restrained captive, so the one's behind the window thought he was for sure dead.

Gambino walked through the door where everyone else was standing and said to Stacy, "Go use Dr. Blythe and heal him. Make sure he still feels the pain when he wakes up. You know what? Leave his legs broken."

"Got it," she responded walking into the room where Ryder seemed to be dead.

Gambino then turned to Colby and said, "Organize a detail to take him to Scarlet Bars Galactic Max Security Prison on the planet, Sadala. You and Strike escort him there."

"We'll get on that right away," Colby told Gambino.

Inside the room, Stacy knelt down next to Ryder and said, "Now, why did you have to go and screw things up? I was starting to like you using me to get that holocron you wanted."

Ryder slowly opened his eyes. The pain he felt everywhere was to great for him to even speak. All he could do was feel pain and listen.

"I guess it's too bad that it was really a tracking device," revealed Stacy with a smile. "Now we know exactly where your base is. Looks like superstition was good for us this time around. You know, Gambino took in a student about ten years ago, and he ended up betraying him too!"

Stacy took off Ryder's black hoodie and long sleeve shirt then summoned Dr. Blythe using her Nen ability. Dr. Blythe is a Hatsu that looks like a blue skinned doll with purple hair. It wears a tan shirt with a red cross on its sleeve. Using its hands and mechanical extensions, it can repair any injury except for death.

Stacy slowly moved her hand down Ryder's chiseled chest and down to his pants. "Well, the boss did say to fix you up, and I need the skin exposed for Dr. Blythe to heals your knees and pelvis," she said giggling to herself.

Colby and Strike were watching from the other room as Stacy took off Ryder's shorts and tights. Colby turned to Strike and said, "Let's go. This is about to be disgusting."

Strike looked at Colby with a blank stare and said, "Are we supposed to care about Ryder? He betrayed us. I couldn't care less what happens to him. She can do whatever she wants with him."

With no one around anymore, Stacy pulled off Ryder's black shoes, shorts, and leggings. He was now laying there bare naked.

"Well. I guess I should at least do the same thing," she said with a smile. She took off her top and revealed her bare chest. The twisted council member giggled as she straddled Ryder and emerged herself in absolute ecstasy.

About twenty minutes passed, and Stacy was more than satisfied with her fun. She slowly stood up allowing for maximum pleasure and knelt by Ryder once again. Using her Nen, she commanded Dr. Blythe to fix any broken bones and damaged organs.

After being off the transport ship for about seven hours, President Reed, General Rodan, General Hall, Dr. Rogers, Murdoch, Katie, and Nero gather inside of a conference room to talk about how to save Ryder.

"Look, Ryder is a key piece to our success. We need him here," said Rodan to the President.

"I'm not saying that we don't need him. I just think that this is a highly dangerous mission that could significantly weaken our forces if it goes wrong," President Reed explained. "We can't risk sending anyone on Zakee's team or any the Shadows."

Nero quickly stood up and said, "I'll go. Just by myself." His eyes fiercely locked onto President Reed's eyes. "I'm the strongest of the Shadows, and I am the fastest. I left him down there. Let me do it."

"This is what I mean, Nero," said the President. "We can't afford to lose you either. Like you said: you're the strongest and fastest of the Shadows. That means that you are one of the strongest and fastest we have… period."

Katie stood up, looked at Nero, then back at President Reed and said, "The two of us are going to go regardless of your decision. We aren't going to let him sit in that prison, and let his hope die out as he dies inside there." She paused to take a breath. "We had already planned on doing this from the beginning. This was just a formality to let you know that we plan on doing this. After all, we are the Shadows."

"Just think about this, Katie," responded the President. "The Council wants us to go after him. We would be falling into their trap. While you are gone, they could very well attack us, and our best mechanic and one of the top five if not three soldiers would be missing."

Murdoch raised his head from his hand. "Look Mr. President. I don't think you heard Katie. We're going. You might be President and all, but what she said is final."

President Reed rested his head in his palms and exhaled deeply. "Well it looks like I can't stop you," he confessed.

The President stood up, looked at both Nero and Katie and said, "Your mission is to go to Scarlet Bars Galactic Max Security Prison and free Ryder Jace. Accept at your own risk. You may leave when you're ready."

A smile appeared on their faces as they turned and hurried out of the conference room with Murdoch close behind them.

"Hey guys!" he yelled ahead. Nero and Katie slowed down and turned around. "I'm coming too," said Murdoch.

Nero looked at him in the eyes and said, "No. You can't. The other Shadows and students from the academy need you here. Train them and make sure they are ready for war. They look up to you. They need you. Here."

Murdoch hung his head. Nero smiled and placed a hand on his shoulder and said, "He's not going to die. We'll get him back."

Murdoch looked up and smiled. Those were the same words he told Nero when they left Ryder at the Council's academy.

"Make sure all of y'all come back," Murdoch said.

Katie and Nero nodded then ran for the Rogue Shadow.

Ryder woke up to a shock of pain that ran up both of his shins.

'At least there isn't a bright light in my face this time,' he thought. "But, that sure was hell back there," he muttered.

_Get out of here. I can feel a dark presence here._

Ryder looked around the room and noticed that he was cuffed to a normal school chair. He saw that there were reddish brown blood stains on the white tile floor. The walls and ceiling were blue and looked like steel.

There was a single window on the ceiling that must have been about two feet by two feet. It seemed like it sat there to mock the possibility of escaping.

"Oh, so you thought that was hell back there?" asked a voice from behind him. The voice laughed with a crackle. The sound of something rolling came from behind him and gradually made its way in front of Ryder. "You know nothing, Ryder Jace."

_He's the dark presence, Ryder._

"Before I start let me introduce myself," said the lanky man. "My name is Dr. Boswell. I'm the Head of Research and Technology for ISIS." He leaned in close to Ryder and whispered, "And I'm in cahoots with the Council."

The doctor leaned back and cracked his neck.

Ryder cringed at the sight and sound.

"When I first heard that the legendary mercenary X was coming to my prison, it gave me one of the greatest feelings I've ever experienced," said the lanky man with glasses.

This doctor had a crooked smile and a crazed look in his eyes. He wore a white lab coat, khaki pants that were tucked into black rain boot, and a black t-shirt that had the words, 'Having fun yet?' typed on them in a bold, white font.

"However," said the man in the lab coat. "I've heard such great things about you." He leaned in close to him with his blood shot eyes widened. "So, please don't disappoint me." He turned around laughing, or better yet, cackling.

Ryder tried to squirm out the chains that bound his wrists, but his arms barely responded to his commands. He was once again stuck.

No way out and all alone.

Helpless.

Doing something on his cart, the man said, "There no need to move around and try to escape. I've injected you with a fluid called, Seprium. It cancels any and all the powers that your body holds. One's you know of, and one's you don't know of. It also makes you limp for a time being while being able to feel any sensation. That is, if you put in the right dosage. That way you will have no defenses when my knives and scalpels slice right through you."

Dr. Boswell turned around with a pair of keys. He walked up close to Ryder and said, "Now, I don't see a need for these anymore."

He walked behind him and unshackled his hands; however, due to the Seprium, his arms swung down by his side. Dr. Boswell picked them up, slid his table in front of Ryder, and set his hands on the table. Ryder saw all the tools that were on the table. There was a syringe, scalpel, carving knife, scissors, saw, a giant clamp, and two pairs of pliers.

"Now before we begin, I'm gonna need some participation from you. Something to keep you sane," he said putting his hand to his head to think. "I've got it! You'll count down from one thousand!" Dr. Boswell clapped in excitement as he picked up a pair of bottle-nose pliers off his table.

"This will be a little introduction, so I'll start a little light for the first day," said Dr. Boswell grinning as he moved his pliers to Ryder's hand. "Let's start with these." Dr. Boswell cracked his neck as a sign of pleasure.

Ryder screamed in dread and pain as the sound of flesh stripping was heard throughout the room.

"What number are we at now?" asked Dr. Boswell.

Panting, moaning, and sniffling up tears, Ryder said, "Three hundred and seventy-two."

Dr. Boswell looked up at one of the cameras and said, "Get Andrew Maddox to come take our friend, Ryder, to his cell. And tell him to clean up this mess!"

The lanky doctor turned around at Ryder and smiled. "See ya soon... My special friend."

"Three hundred and seventy-one… Three hundred and seventy," continued Ryder in a broken voice as Dr. Boswell walked out the room and a younger man walked in with a mop.

This guy had short brown hair and was about five feet and ten inches. He was wearing a lab coat just like the doctor.

As Andrew was mopping up the blood on the ground, he said to Ryder, "You'll be healed by the time you come back. It's their way of making sure you still feel pain."

"How… How could someone enjoy doing this," Ryder said with his voice cracking every other word.

"Don't know. That's above my pay grade. It's just my job to clean you up and take you back to your cell," replied Andrew.

He paused mopping and said, "This is gonna be easier to do with you in your cell." Andrew reached in his pocket and pulled out a syringe that was labeled, 'Seprium.'

"With this dosage, you will be able to control your body, but you still won't have any of your powers. It will also clot your blood, so you won't bleed out," explained Andrew.

He stuck Ryder in the forearm and injected the serum into his system. Andrew then went to the side of the room and grabbed a wheel chair to put Ryder in for transportation to his cell.

It was a short ride to his cell. Every bump and turn made his body ache in absolute pain. Ryder was now getting the ability to move again.

He looked down at his hands and noticed that where his fingernails use to be, it was just purple skin due to bruising and blood all over them. Along with that, both thumbs were gone, and the wound was cauterized. Ryder thought it was to make sure he wouldn't bleed out, but since Andrew told him that the serum does that, he knew that it was just for pain. Ryder assumed that his feet were the same as his hands. He could also feel the pain of gashes along his body, especially his back, sides, shoulders, and legs.

"Here we are," said Andrew. "We know how much you like to fight, so we have you on the edge of the Gladiator Pit."

"W-what's that?" Ryder asked.

"A pit that prisoners can fight in to release their anger or just because they like to fight, but since no one has their powers, it's just a fist fight until someone is knocked out," explained Andrew who laughed at the end of saying that. "But, it looks like you will not be participating with the condition that you're in."

Andrew opened the cell door then wheeled Ryder in and dumped him on the ground. Then he wheeled away whistling a melancholy tune.

Ryder sat up and crawled to the corner. The cell was made up of steel bars and those were the only thing separating them from their cellmates as well.

Ryder was freezing cold from leaning against the cold bars. He knew that he had lost a lot of blood too. It didn't help that all he had left were his black shoes, shorts, and hoodie that had its sleeves ripped off.

All he could hear around him were yells and chants cheering on a fight in the pit. Ryder crawled his way to the back of his cell that was on the edge of the pit and stood up to watch the match.

He saw a man that was at about six and a half feet tall and weighed close to two hundred and fifty pounds. His opponent looked about six feet tall and maybe two hundred pounds. He was getting the snot beaten out of him. Each punch that the bigger guy threw made Ryder flashback to his time with Dr. Boswell, so he flinched.

"Damn. They really messed you up in there," said a voice coming from the cell to his right.

Ryder sat down with his back up against the part of the cell that faced the pit and said, "Yeah."

He didn't say much. Ryder didn't really want to talk about his time in there.

"Hahahaha," laughed his cell mate. "The Ryder Jace. Mercenary X. The Shadow of Typhon! The man that broke students out of the Council of Anubis' academy! Has been brought to his knees because of some pain. Incredible. Truly incredible."

Ryder looked to where the voice was coming from to see his cellmate, but darkness shrouded the cell completely.

"You know," said the cellmate. "The larger man in there actually has incredible powers. He has the power of two Devil Fruits. One fruit allows him to create giant cracker soldiers that are tough and pack a punch with a sword. The second fruit allows him to transform into a giant Buddha. It's called the Human-Human Fruit, Model Buddha. He'd make a fantastic soldier if he gets out."

Ryder, still looking in the direction of his cellmate, asked him, "So, what'd you do to get captured."

His cellmate laughed. "Like they could bring me in here. I voluntarily broke in."

"What?! Why would you do that?" asked Ryder shocked.

"So that I can break him out," responded the cellmate.

Ryder let a few moments of silence go by before he asked one more thing, "Who are you?"

The cellmate scoffed at the question.

Ryder felt his head begin to throb. His vision began to blur then fade to black. Sliding down the bar of the cell, Ryder fell to the ground. He passed out due to loss of blood and shock from the pain.

"Ryder Jace. It is now time for your next appointment," said Andrew Maddox unlocking the door to his cell.

Ryder slowly opened his eyes. He looked at his neighboring cell and didn't see anyone there. It was still pitch black.

Andrew pulled out his phone then threw a dart into Ryder. The dart and phone were connected through Nen, so now, Andrew could manipulate Ryder however he saw fit. However, he usually only did this so that he could inject the Seprium serum into his patients.

He sat Ryder down in the wheel chair and injected the Seprium into his biscept then took out his manipulation needle. Ryder regained consciousness and remembered his curiosity about his cellmate.

As Andrew was rolling Ryder backwards out of the cell, his cellmate walked up to the front of the cell where the only light was. His cellmate had the same short, black, flippy hair as Ryder. The same blue eyes that he reminded him of his mother, and a strong chiseled jaw line that resembled his father's chin.

Andrew noticed the similarities between the two and said, "Damn that's freaky. You could honestly pass as brothers."

The cellmate smirked and said, "Have fun in there, Ryder."

As he said that, Ryder knew that his brother, Khilor, was indeed his cellmate.

Andrew wheeled Ryder into the same room where he was tortured earlier. Ryder looked back at Andrew and asked frantically, "How could they be ready to start again? It feels like it's only been two hours."

"It's been thirty-three hours. You've coming in and out of consciousness in your cell for quite some time now. Plus, they make the rules, not me. And like I said, they'll heal all your wounds before they start again, so Dr. Boswell could've just gotten some water then go at it again. However, he showed mercy," Andrew said.

Ryder closed his eyes, then opened them again. This time, instead of the torturing room, Ryder was face to face with his Force Jinchuriki, Anakin Skywalker.

"Are you going to help me get out of this or not!" yelled Ryder.

Anakin looked up at Ryder and said, _I've already tried to give you my power. Nothing happened! You think I want this!_

The Force being began to laugh. _I should've seen this coming. You start off as a mercenary. You 'accepted' the contracts for people you thought deserved death, but failed to accept that there are consequences to those choices… I WOULD KNOW. _

Ryder stared at the ground without saying a word.

_And now, you've put your friends at risk of death. They're going to try and save you, but they're only going to die._

Quickly looking into Anakin's eyes, Ryder glared at him. Instead of sky blue eyes, they burned yellow and orange.

_Ha. Every choice you make. Every route you take; all you do is leave broken paths._

Andrew brought Ryder to the chair and forcefully put the injured Ryder in his seat. "Okay," he said chaining his hands behind his back and his legs to the legs of the chair. "Let's get these bad boys off." Andrew took off Ryder's shirt and shoes.

This was the first time that Ryder was able to see the wounds that were inflicted on other parts of his body. There were areas where skin was peeled off his abdomen area and sides. There were also deep cuts on his chest and arms. His toenails had been peeled off as well, but none of his toes were missing. Instead, deep gashes were made to his shins and thighs.

Walking away from Ryder, Andrew told him, "Dr. Boswell will be here in any second." Andrew's presence activated the motion sensor door, and so it slid open to reveal a waiting Dr. Boswell.

Andrew looked back and said, "I take that back. Seems like he's ready to go right now."

Dr. Boswell smiled at his introduction and began walking towards Ryder with his iconic rolling table. Ryder could hear the clinging of his instruments, but there was something extra now. There was a white cloth covering something that looked little like it would be a large cup.

Ryder stared at his torturer. His eyes still yellow and red.

Ryder's anger towards him only made Dr. Boswell happier. He cracked his neck out of habit for pleasure.

"So, you're acting tough today. Mister you can't scare me. But yesterday, you were screaming and crying. Typical. All you are is just an act." The doctor continued walked towards Ryder.

"Anyway, welcome to my favorite part," Dr. Boswell announced. He placed the table a few feet in front of Ryder so that he could get a good look at the tools. They were the same as last time.

Dr. Boswell stood in front of the shaking and teary eyed Ryder. He still remained silent.

"So, I'm about to unchain your hands, but in order that you don't try to fight back, I'll just beat the shit out of you real quickly," said the lanky doctor.

"Well, I guess before I do that, I should heal your external injuries as well as regenerate your missing appendages." Once Dr. Boswell said this, he closed his eyes, looked to the ceiling, then inhaled.

The lanky doctor's body began to flash a bright blue color. After a few seconds of flashing the blue color, the flashing stopped, and Dr. Boswell was now a glowing, blue humanoid figure. On his forehead was a circle with a dot on its inside.

"My power is Dr. Manhattan. One of my powers is to create and destroy matter itself. Quite remarkable isn't it," he proclaimed.

Dr. Boswell held out his palm towards Ryder. Suddenly, the gashes began to close, and his thumbs began to reappear as if nothing ever happened to them.

Once he was practically healed, Dr. Boswell began to speak again saying, "Another plus of this power is its superhuman strength." He reared back and began punching Ryder in the face, stomach, and sides with incredible force.

After about a minute of beating a bloodied Ryder, Dr. Boswell deactivated his powers and unlocked the lock that restrained his wrists. "Now be a good boy and don't do anything stupid."

Ryder's eyes were sunken as his body ached from the fresh beating. Blood covered his face and ran down to his chest. Bruises had already formed on his stomach and chest as well.

Dr. Boswell chained both wrists to the arms of the chair we was in. "Good job, Ryder. However, to reduce your movement, I'm still going to chain you down. Now onto the fun part. Oh, and don't forget to start counting," said the doctor smiling then he cracked his neck.

Just like the day before, Dr. Boswell started with the fingernails. Next, he moved onto the toenails, and then he used the scissors to cut off every toe and finger. Ryder was slowly mumbling numbers. "Eight hundred and thirteen… Eight hundred and twelve…"

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

"Six hundred and thirty-nine…"

"No… NOO! STOOPPPP!" 

"Two hundred and forty-five…"

"Good job, Ryder. You're doing magnificently well. Better than any patient I have every had!" said the crazed doctor with glee. "Now this will be the main course, but I don't want you to pass out, so I'm going to inject you with a little bit of Adrenaline."

Dr. Boswell grabbed a syringe off the table and stuck it into Ryder's gashed up arm. The only reason why Ryder hadn't bled out yet was because just about every gash, cut, or removal was followed by that area being cauterized. He went back to his table, put the syringe down, and picked up the saw.

Ryder had gashes and burns everywhere. He no longer had fingers or toes, and one ear was even gone. He was covered in enough blood to where he could pass as either a zombie or dead in general. Tears began rolling down his face. He had screamed so loud for so often that his voice was nearly gone.

"What number were we on again?" asked Dr. Boswell as he cracked his neck.

"Two hundred and forty-three," replied Ryder.

"Wrong," said the doctor in a serious voice. He swiftly elbowed Ryder across his face making him spit up a large amount of blood. "Two hundred and forty-four. Do go on now."

"Two hundred and forty-fo— AHHHHHH!"

Dr. Boswell was sawing off Ryder's left hand.

"LOUDER RYDER!"

Every slice, Ryder grimaced and moaned, but he continued and say as he twitched, "Two hundred and forty-four."

"Two hundred and two…"

"Two hundred and one…"

Dr. Boswell grabbed both of Ryder's hands and threw them in a tin trash can that was behind Ryder's chair.

"Look here, Ryder," Dr. Boswell said. Ryder stopped counting and looked up at him with sunken eyes that showed nothing but pain and sorrow.

"The weak never survive. For instance, you wouldn't be here if you WERE strong, but you're weak. Just like all the people you've killed. The weak are violated, oppressed, afflicted, and prosecuted," he said with a laugh. "Just like what you're experiencing."

Dr. Boswell walked over to his table and lifted the white cloth and revealed a jar. He took the top off the jar and reached his hand into it then pulled something out.

What Ryder was looking at in front of him was a four inch baby snake squirming in the fingers of Dr. Boswell.

The doctor inched closer to Ryder.

"N—No… D—Don't…," whimpered Ryder.

"Don't worry I had it defanged," said the doctor with in insane smile and look in his eye. He thrusted his hand with the snake at Ryder's face and laughed as it slithered up Ryder's nose.

Doctor Boswell looked on laughing as Ryder's body began to violently shake.

Ryder's eyes opened to Andrew cleaning his blood from the ground. He looked down and saw this his hands, with their fingers, and his toes were back on his body. Very slowly, Ryder turned to Andrew and said, "Hey… Is my ear back too?

Andrew turned to him and said, "Yeah. Dr. Boswell decided to give you back your removed limbs as a present of making it through the session without dying. However, he didn't heal all the gashes and burns. But now that you're awake, I can take you back to your cell."

Ryder looked down at his body. His arms and legs still had their deep gashes. Random places on his body were red and brown from fresh and dried burns.

Just like before, Andrew picked up Ryder and placed him in the wheel chair. Ryder moaned as he was lifted and placed into it. This time, Ryder was going back with only his black shorts on.

When Andrew reached Ryder's cell, he unlocked the bar door and wheeled Ryder inside. Tipping the wheel chair over, Ryder fell to the cold surface that he hoped would be his bed for the night. Andrew locked the door behind him, then went to mop up the remaining blood and mess.

"So, how'd that session go," asked his cellmate walking over to where the two cells shared the same wall.

Slowly, Ryder crawled to the back of his cell and sat against it. Shaking, Ryder said, "How do you think, dipshit."

"Woah there. I'm just trying to be a thoughtful brother," he said.

Ryder glared at his cellmate then said, "I forgot about that." Ryder looked back forward and said, "Why should I even be talking to you."

Khilor scoffed and said, "Cause you'll probably go crazy if you don't. I know that your Force buddy inside has gone quiet."

Khilor leaned on the bars to get a better look at his little brother. The skin color difference between his pale face, arms, and feet made it evident that the pinkness of his hands, ear, and toes indicated that those appendages were new. However, the nails did not regenerate. His torturer wanted him to continue to feel that pain.

Ryder remained looking forward. Anakin hadn't said anything to him even though he had tried many times to talk to the Force being within him.

"So, what did he do? Cut off your hands, toes and ears? Then cut you up?" asked Khilor.

Ryder exhaled deeply. "And he put a baby snake up my nose," he said quietly.

Khilor eyes widened. "There's a lot of room inside of a head for a baby snake to wander. Damn, man," he said.

Even though they were enemies, Khilor still felt bad for his brother. They shared a few good memories even if those didn't quite matter anymore. He assumed the same position as Ryder. Sitting down with his back against the pit.

"Why'd you change your name? I like Connor better," said Ryder.

"I didn't want the name that our father gave me," said Connor. "You might not remember, but he had a choice. He didn't have to send me and mom away. There were a few days where we could have left the country or even planet and lived a normal life, but he threw it all away. And when we were gone," he said turning his head and looking at Ryder. "He became a drunk and didn't even care about you."

A few moments of silence past. "Bare it so no one else has to, Ryder. And don't you dare die in there either. That would be a disgrace to our mother who suffered for years and was killed for no reason. Do this, then fight me like a man when the time comes," said Connor.

A few tears rolled down Ryder's as he tried to sniffle up his runny nose. "I don't know if I'll make it, though. I can't do anything in there to fight back, and if I could, my body is too much in pain to do so. I can feel my body giving out on me."

"Same old Ryder," said Connor. "When the going gets tough, you find a different path to follow, or you stand there and do nothing while others get hurt. Leaving a wake of brokenness behind you."

Connor looked at Ryder and said, "Look at me."

Ryder turned his head towards his brother.

"Surviving this will be key to truly unlocking the powers you were born with. There's a reason why you weren't named the Jinchuuriki for the Nine-Tails," Connor said.

Connor saw Andrew coming their way with a wheel chair. He knew what that meant. "Don't give up. That's not what WE do. Fight me at full strength the next time we see each other," said Connor.

"Alright, Ryder," said Andrew at the door to his cell. "It's time to go."

"Endure it, Ryder. Become something new. Shed your skin and become better. Gain strength and power," encourage Ryder's older brother.

Ryder dreaded seeing that wheelchair enter his cage, but the words of Connor made him feel more confident. Andrew picked up Ryder and placed him in the wheelchair, and off they went into Dr. Boswell's play room.

A week had gone by and Andrew set Ryder in his desk just like the times before. He chained his hands to the arms of the chair this time, and still chained each leg to the legs of the chair.

The door to the room opened right as Andrew finished chaining his legs to the chair. He backed away from Ryder and bowed as Dr. Boswell walked past him and towards Ryder. The only thing Dr. Boswell was doing was smiling at the fun he was about to have.

Ryder blacked out from reality and dove deep into his subconscious.

Blindfolded, he felt a warm, rough hand cradle his cheek. The blindfold fell from his face to show the face of Korvin. Ryder's eye gaped open as wide as they could.

"Master… Korvin…," muttered Ryder.

"Long time no see kiddo," he replied. "Looks like you've taken some pretty bad beatings as of lately." He laughed. "How amusing." Korvin looked over his shoulder as a loud bang came from behind.

Korvin looked back at Ryder and said, "Looks like your real Master is here."

Dr. Boswell was walking to him with a metal club in his hand. "Have you been counting?" he asked.

Ryder nodded and picked it back up saying, "Seven hundred and ninety –seven."

Dr. Boswell made Ryder keep counting even as he drove scalpels down his arms, beat him with a club, broke his bones, or removed his body parts. Each time he would make them reappear, but the pain stayed.

Ryder closed his eyes in the moment and saw Korvin once again.

"You know, when I took you on, one of your conditions when you were a mercenary was that you would be able to pick and choose the missions to make sure you were killing for the right reason, but I find that way of thinking very childish. Because, killing is killing. No matter who it is. I blame that outlook on your dad. He never taught you much, so you formed these ideals from your friends and teachers at school. This makes you weak. It makes you second guess if you should kill or not which can put your own survival at risk," preached Korvin.

A surge of pain shot through Ryder as the metal club came down on his forearm crushing that bone.

"Ryder," said Dr. Boswell. "Do you know why I enjoy doing this to you so much?"

Ryder didn't answer. He was just shaking from the unbelievable amount of pain he was feeling.

"It's because you have an extraordinary amount of life force. I've never met someone with so much before." Dr. Boswell walked behind Ryder and said in his ear, "Because Korvin trained you, you grew in powers that you didn't know you had. And you grew exponentially. That's right, Typhon. Korvin's training. I'm talking about you, Ryder."

Tears and sweat streamed down Ryder's face as he viciously shook. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the same snake, but a little bit wider being held next to his face.

"This is a baby coral snake. Do you know about them?" asked Dr. Boswell. "Well, I'm getting antsy because I wanna…" he said barely containing his laughter. "Put this up your nose!" he said laughing hysterically.

Ryder stared at the snake while screaming, "No! Please… D-Don't do it!"

Dr. Boswell reached towards Ryder's nose and let the baby snake crawl up inside of Ryder. Ryder screamed in pain and agony and frantically stomped his feet as he felt the snake crawl up his nose and inside his brain cavity. He began to cut his wrists as he tried to get from the chain that bound them.

"Yes, Ryder! Scream! Let me hear your pain! Let me hear your life force trickle down to nothing!" yelled Dr. Boswell as he laughed at Ryder's pain and took pleasure in it.

After about five minutes of yelling, crying, and trying to break free, the snake crawled out from Ryder's ear and fell on the floor.

Ryder's head was hung low. His face was drenched in sweat, tears, and blood.

Suddenly, Ryder's surroundings were white. He felt two rough hands lift his face up. It was Korvin.

He spoke to Ryder saying, "Kill who deserves to be killed. That's how you grew up. But, just because he's hurting you doesn't mean that he helps others out in tremendous ways. If you kill him, then you'd also be killing the ones he helps," said Korvin looking into Ryder's blank eyes. "Pathetic. Don't you want this guy to suffer just as much as you have? But, you can't do it. A lot of people have died because you have become a part of their life. And it's all…"

"Your."

"Fault."

Ryder felt his head being pulled up by the strong grip of Dr. Boswell. "We were just sent this girl and boy from the Council of Anubis. They are two of the students that escaped because of you. Bounty hunters found them wondering around a department store. Supposedly, they like each other quite a bit. How sad," he said sliding his finger down the girl's cheek.

Rope and chains bound both of their wrists and feet. Their mouths were bound by some cloth tied behind their head.

"All of the drawbacks in this world stems from a lack of ability. The person who told me this is a real sack of shit, but now I'm grateful to him. Ryder, I've come to understand something these past few meetings. Nothing to do with your life force, but you have a very tough mind. So, I've come up with a game for you," said Dr. Boswell. He walked next to the boy and girl. "You get to choose who I kill!"

Dr. Boswell cracked his neck then said, "So, which one?"

Ryder sat there frozen and shaking with the decision at hand.

"If you don't choose, I'll kill them both!"

The lanky doctor walked up into Ryder's face and said, "How about I rephrase the scenario."

He grabbed his own chin and the top of his head and cracked his neck once more then said, "Which one do you want to save?"

Ryder's face grimaced as his mind raced. "Why does it have to be me," he asked looking down at the two students.

The girl, Avery, was squirming about, but the boy, John, looked up at Ryder with a determined face and nodded at him.

"Come on, hurry up and choose," begged Dr. Boswell. "I want to kill!"

"I can't choose something like this!" cried Ryder. "It'd be like I'm the one doing the killing of these innocent people!"

"Pick one! Pick one! Pick one!" yelled the doctor.

"If someone is going to die, just kill me!" yelled back Ryder as tears fell from his face.

Sighing, Dr. Boswell walked over to the girl, picked her up by the throat and began squeezing while yelling back at Ryder, "Well?! Well?! Well?! Whose it going to be Ryder! Choose!"

As the doctor was yelling this back at Ryder, John was squirming for Ryder to choose him instead of the girl. He squirmed and squirmed until he freed his mouth and shouted at Ryder, "Pick me! Me! Pick me, Ryder!"

Ryder was frozen with fear, dread, sorrow, and hatred at himself. He couldn't say anything as the two were yelling at him to pick. Eventually, the doctor squeezed and broke Avery's neck, killing her. Ryder's eyes widened at the sound of the neck snapping, and John yelled in agony.

"Ah, my piece to the game broke didn't she," said the doctor. He threw her limp body aside and walked behind John.

He picked up his head and faced it at Ryder. John's eyes were fierce, filled with rage at Ryder and the doctor. "It's ALL your fault," reiterated Dr. Boswell.

He then thrusted his hand through John's chest, killing him as well. As Dr. Boswell threw his body aside, Ryder's surroundings went white again.

"No… No… It's all my fault," Ryder muttered. He could see the blood and the bodies on the floor in front of him.

"How are you just now getting it," asked Korvin who was standing behind him. "You'll just sit there and keep blaming yourself until what? It's not like it is going to change you. You don't try to change. It's all your fault. That's obvious, isn't it? Is it accident? Fate? Coincidence? There's no such thing as fate. This is simply a combination of one circumstance with another. And who is it that causes these circumstances," asked Korvin as he walked in front of Ryder. With a stern voice he confirmed, "It's you." Korvin paused.

"All the disadvantages in this world stems from a person's lack of ability. He's right, isn't he? This all started because you were a fool the way you handled the world," Korvin said.

He walked next to Ryder and lifted his head. Ryder's eyes were sluggish. Korvin said to him, "If you had been strong and killed Dr. van Hoosier, then you wouldn't be going through this, and John and Avery would still be alive. Avery would at least be alive if you chose John. If only you had been strong then."

Korvin walked in front of Ryder, activated his Sharingan and put Ryder in a genjutsu.

"Don't forget about the future," said Korvin. He showed Gambino, van Hoosier, and Dr. Boswell killing everyone at the US base. Even Katie, Ziggy, and Murdoch. Blood was splattered on the walls, and Dr. Boswell was holding Katie by her neck.

"Let's not forget about the one you care about most," Korvin said. Ryder then saw Nero walking in front of him in the hallways of the Council of Anubis academy.

"Nero!" shouted out Ryder.

Nero stopped walking. He slowly turned to Ryder who was chained to a wall. Tears flowing down his face and uncontrollably shaking. "You're a monster," he told Ryder coldly.

"No… I-I'm…," stuttered Ryder.

"Why did you make me follow you down this fucked up path? Once again, you failed to choose. To be strong. And so, this happened," said Nero.

Suddenly, Dr. Boswell appeared from behind Nero with blood on his face and Nero's throat in his hand.

Ryder began screaming from the thought and experience of the genjutsu. Korvin brought him back to his subconscious. "This is the way of life you've chosen, Ryder. Why are you crying? Why are you sobbing? You made the decision not to choose. Not to be strong, right? You can be brave and smart at times, but while it seems like you're choosing both, you're really forsaking both. Your father was the same way with you and Connor. If he wouldn't have sent your mother away, you would still have a mother, a brother, and a sober father. And possibly a living father."

"Shut up," muttered Ryder.

"It takes a real fool to have loved you. If your father had loved you, then you would have had a real family," said Korvin.

"Stop it," said Ryder.

"That's what you wish he did, isn't it?" asked Korvin.

"Stop talking," Ryder said shaking off tears. The presence of Korvin disappeared. It was just Ryder and his chair alone in the white void of his subconscious.

"Dad, why did you make Mom and Connor go away? Why did you have to make me so lonely? I wished you would have at least done that for me. Not sending them away," Ryder said crying.

Korvin's voice came back and ask, "Even if it meant forsaking your friends?"

Ryder yelled out, "Even if it meant that!"

"Even if it meant hurting someone else?" asked Korvin.

"Even if it meant that!" Ryder screamed out.

"Even if it meant taking his life?" asked Korvin.

Ryder yelled out with pure conviction, "Even if it meant that!"

Korvin appeared in front of Ryder and embraced him in a giant hug and said, "Good job, my apprentice."

He lifted up Ryder's head and said, "There are times when you have to give up one thing to preserve the other. This isn't kindness. It's just weakness if you can't do that. Your father didn't have the strength, the resolve, to say no to the pressures of sending off your family. Can you still remain on the side of being hurt? Can you tolerate someone like Boswell?"

Ryder's face had a slower but steady flow of tears falling, but his eyes were looking at Korvin in complete trust at this point. Ryder responded, "No… I can't!"

On the walls of the white void, it looked like someone splatter painted a part of the wall red. Korvin and Ryder both looked at it. Korvin slowly moved away from Ryder and said, "Your precious, Nero. Your friends at the US might also go through what just happened."

Looking up at Korvin with his tears slowly stopping, Ryder said, "Anyone who tries to take my place from me will get no mercy."

"Do you have that kind of strength?" asked Korvin.

"Yes," Ryder said softly but with confidence. More and more splatter paint hit the walls making it more red.

Suddenly, a red lightsaber was thrusted through Korvin from the back. As the lightsaber was turned off, Korvin's body fell to the ground. Ryder's tears blurred out who it was that killed his old master.

Ryder wiped his eyes. A young man in his mid-twenties stood in front of him. He was wearing dark brown boots, brown pants, and light and dark brown Jedi tunics. He had brown flowy hair and a scar over his right eye.

He looked the man into his eyes and saw pain, anger, and hatred in his red, orange, and yellow eyes.

"Anakin," murmured Ryder.

"No. Vader," he responded in a deep and confident voice.

"You've come back," replied Ryder.

"Does that mean you accept me?" asked Vader.

Ryder looked down at his old master, but his body was no longer there. "No. not fully," said Ryder. Suddenly, the chains that held Ryder to the chair broke, and Ryder was at Anakin's throat. More of the walls had turned red now.

"Even if that's the wrong choice?" asked Vader.

Ryder responded with wide eyes saying, "I'm not the one who's wrong… What's wrong is this world. The other people within it."

All the white on the walls, ceiling, and floor started to get consumed by the color red washing over the pale white.

Vader chuckled and said, "That will do… Ryder."

"To live is to become stronger. So that you can make the hard decisions when the time comes. So that you can save the people you love with your own power," said Vader as his body began to fade into dust.

As a sphere of red energy floating. Vader said, "Now take me."

Ryder, who was no longer crying or shaking, walked over to Vader and reached out his hand. He grabbed the floating orb of energy like a baseball then crushed it in his grip.

Red light shone from his fist and filled the whole void with red light. When the light faded, Ryder was left alone in the red room with his Revan mask now on. There was a new meaning to this mask for him.

He moved his hand to cover a large part of the mask. His left eye remained visible. His orange and yellow eyes slowly spun and turned into a reddish orange Mangekyo Sharingan. As his eyes slowly changed, Ryder's hair slowly began to turn snow white starting with the crown of his head.

Dr. Boswell slapped the metal club into his right hand and said, "Ryder. Our time together has come to an end. It seems that you have finally broken; just like the others. I can tell because the color of your hair is now white. That usually happens when people die on the inside." Dr. Boswell paused to see if he would get a reaction, but Ryder did nothing.

"I have also been given a special mission that I must help carry out since by powers are so useful. I've been tasked with helping to eliminate the main US branch. I must say, I am happy this gets to end, because now I can steal all of your powers using Dr. Manhattan," shouted Dr. Boswell with unsurpassable happiness.

Nero and Katie were coming up close to the Scarlet Bar Max Security Prison; not even a mile away.

"Okay, so I'm going to fly over top and drop you off and then fly off and wait for your signal to come back?" asked Katie.

"You got it. It won't take long. I've got a plan," said Nero with a mischievous smile.

"I know that look, Nero. Don't do anything too crazy. I'd like to wake up tomorrow morning back at the base," said Katie.

Nero gave her a thumbs up and hurried to the loading ramp.

Katie positioned the Rogue Shadow right above the prison and let down the loading ramp. Since the Rogue Shadow had such high tech. equipment, it could hide from just about any scanner.

"Go ahead and jump down!" yelled Katie.

Nero jumped from the ramp and onto the roof of the maximum-security prison. He looked around and didn't see anyone, so he took off to look for an entrance. About a hundred yards away, Nero found a single window about two feet in diameter. "Okay, let see what we have down here."

Nero peered down the window and saw two people. One was a lanky man with midnight black hair wearing a lab coat. The other was a man in his early twenties with snow-white hair. He was wearing just black shorts that were ripped, but it looked like there was a black hoodie right next to him.

The man in the lab coat walked behind the younger man, grabbed his hair, and pulled his head back. The window was positioned so that Nero and the guy with white hair made eye contact at that exact moment.

'I know that face,' thought Ryder.

_Do it._

Filled with determination to not let Dr. Boswell kill Nero too, Ryder yanked his arms and legs away from the chair successfully shattering the chains. In one very fast motion that even Nero had a hard time keeping up with him, Ryder did a flip over Dr. Boswell and landed behind him. He gathered the Force and lightning in between his palms and condensed it until it was as small he could get it. Ryder released the ball of Force and lightning which created an EMP type of effect. This made it impossible for Dr. Boswell to turn into Dr. Manhattan.

After this attack, the emergency sirens went off because the monitor room saw it all with a camera being in there.

Katie took the sound of the sirens as Nero's sign for a scoop up.

Nero was looking on in shock as Ryder used the Force to take the carving knife from Boswell's table.

Ryder turned to his torturer then cracked his neck. With one hand, he slowly inched the knife closer and closer to Dr. Boswell. With his other hand, he froze the doctor in place.

"One- hundred and eleven…"

"One-hundred and ten…"

"You think you can kill me?!" yelled the crazed doctor.

"One-hundred and nine," continued Ryder.

The knife was now up against Doctor Boswell's chest. "Mission failed," Ryder told his torturer.

He slowly plunged the knife deep into the doctor's chest then pulled it down to the bottom of his stomach. Ryder had successfully stabbed his heart and disemboweled Dr. Boswell in one smooth attack. He pulled the knife out of his torturer and threw it at the wall, and it stuck into it.

Nero noticed that Ryder was going to put on his hoodie, so he released his kagunes and formed a drill like head with them. He then began bashing on the window which must've been at least a foot thick. Eventually it started to crack, then it gave way and broke down towards Ryder who simply stepped out of the way of the falling pieces of the window.

Gathering the Force into his legs, Ryder jumped up and grabbed the edge of the roof where the window had been busted. Nero grabbed his wrist and began pulling Ryder up. It was harder than usual because he felt something slimy on him, but Nero easily got over it.

Ryder stood up next to his best friend, Nero, right above where he was within inches of losing his life. Nero quickly gave Ryder a big hug and said, "I'm sorry for not being strong enough to beat van Hoosier. For not staying behind with you. I promise. I'll be different from here on out."

A tear fell from Ryder's eye as he said, "Same here, Nero." The two let go of one another and Ryder said, "I have to become stronger to, so that when anyone is in trouble, I can take care of them. I've been too weak."

From a distance Nero heard someone call out, "RYDER!"

Over Ryder's shoulder there was a figure that Nero couldn't make out to be, so Nero taped on Ryder's shoulder and pointed to the person calling for him.

"Stay here," he told Nero who nodded. Ryder jogged over to the figure who was still shrouded in black of night.

Once Ryder got close, he knew who the person was. "Connor… What is it?"

"That has a familiar ring to it," said Khilor. "You might want these." Khilor held out Ryder's Jedi belt and two lightsabers.

"You're right I'll need these the next time I see you," replied Ryder.

Khilor studied Ryder who now had white hair, scars on his legs, sides, and shoulder. He was sure that there was even more that he couldn't see. "They really did rough you up in there, didn't they?"

Ryder nodded slowly with a straight face. "These have been some of the worst days of my life, but in the end, I'm no longer weak. Like you suggested: I changed."

"I'll take it that that's why your hair is now white and your eyes are yellow and orange," said Khilor. "It seems to have happened naturally. You took in a power that changed you as a person... Your old self died."

"And that change is how I've gotten stronger," continued Ryder.

"Well, I've got to thank you for making a big enough distraction to allow me to break my friend out. He's a little shy, but you'll see him around soon," said Khilor with a chuckle.

Ryder showed a soft smile.

A few moments of silence pasted until Khilor said, "I know you know this and feel the same way too, but the next time we see each other, we will be enemies, and I will do my best to kill you. Even if you have gained tremendous power these past days."

"Good luck until then, brother," said Ryder in response. "Don't die on me just yet." He threw his fist out to Khilor who looked at it.

Khilor smiled then pressed his fist against Ryder's. "Until then little brother. By the way, send Blair my best wishes."

Ryder nodded and said, "I don't know about that. How about you tell him when we see each other."

Khilor nodded and smiled.

They turned and went their separate ways.

On his way back to Nero, Ryder strapped his belt around his waist and noticed a dark black ship hovering over Nero.

'Finally. A bed,' thought Ryder.

Ryder reached Nero and both looked up to the lowered ramp that was about twenty yards above them. They jumped and landed on the ramp. The two walked up and into the main hold where Katie was waiting to see Ryder.

Her eyes widened at how much he had changed. His hair was snow white. His yellow and orange eyes seemed dull but full of anger. His finger and toe nails were purple from the continuous pulling of finger nails which haven't been close to healing. There were scars on his legs and shoulders from gashes he had received. The skin color of his hands and toes were peach compared to the rest his pale body. She knew what that meant.

Tears rolled down her face as she ran up to Ryder and gave him a big, warm hug.

Slowly, Ryder wrapped his arms around her too and buried his head in her shoulder.

Nero suddenly spoke up and said, "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but we need to get out of here. We're still above a max-security prison, and they know that Ryder, the most wanted man in the galaxy, has escaped."

"Yeah. Yeah, of course," said Katie sniffling. "I'll get us out of here. Ryder just go back to your room and rest. I'm sure you need it."

"Okay," said Ryder gently as Nero showed him the way to his room. Nero opened the door for him and showed him to his bed.

"If you're still in here by the time we get back, I'll come in and get you," said Nero.

"Sounds good," Ryder replied as he laid down on his bed.

He took off his hoodie and got under the covers.

'It's so warm,' he thought. 'But tomorrow, I get back to work.'

Ryder closed his eyes ready to drift to sleep, but the image of Dr. Boswell came to mind. Just like how he killed him in that room, Ryder killed him from his mind and peacefully fell asleep.

_Long and gruesome chapter. When it comes to the torture storyline, if you know, you know. I appreciate the reviews; however, I'm too far along to change something that could have been done towards the beginning. Please keep commenting so I can learn how to be a better writer. Until the next chapter…_

_ ~Aldon_


	31. Chapter 30: Declaration of War

**Chapter 30: Declaration of War**

Katie and Nero sat in the cockpit anxiously waiting for Ryder to come out of his room. It had been two days since they left Sadala, the planet the prison was on. They still had one more day until they reached the US base that was located on the planet, Dioxydan. Since the US did not want to waste materials, they used their ship as their home base. That planet was a lot like Earth, except it was colder on Dioxydan because it is farther from the Sun.

"Do you know what happened to Ryder in there?" asked Katie. She had never seen Ryder look so dull. The fact that his hair was dyed even added to her concern.

"I only saw a little bit," said Nero. "He was chained to a chair; only wearing his shorts. No shoes or shirt. A guy in a lab coat pulled his head back, and that's when we made eye contact. When he saw me, he broke free from his chains and practically disemboweled the other guy." Nero paused to think about why he killed him so gruesomely. "After I saw him do that, I broke the window I was looking through, and he escaped. But, the worst was seeing him on the roof. He had so many scars on his legs, and all his nails were gone. That's when it came to me. He was being tortured down there, and he had killed his torturer."

Katie covered her mouth with horror and shock. To think that Ryder was so helpless made her sick to her stomach. "Will he be the same as before?" she asked.

Nero shrugged and said, "It's hard to tell. But, one thing is for sure. We can't treat him any differently than when we last saw him. If he realized that we were pitying him, it would only make him mad and feel even more helpless."

Quietly Katie muttered, "Do you think we should talk to him about it?"

"I don't know to be honest," replied Nero.

At that moment, the two heard Ryder's door slide open. The sound of Ryder slowly walking filled the cockpit. Ryder turned the corner into the cockpit once again letting the other two see him with all his wounds.

"Don't worry guys, I'll be fine. It'll just take some time to heal," said Ryder holding one of his arms and leaning against the wall.

Nero got up in a hurry and put Ryder's arm around his shoulder. "You shouldn't be moving too much, you know. It's bad for your wounds."

"Look," said Ryder. "If I stay in that room, I'll go insane and become depressed. After being tortured, I think I can handle the pain of walking around and talking to y'all."

Nero sighed and said, "Let's just go to the couches."

With one arm around his shoulder, Nero led Ryder to the couches with Katie following close behind.

"I take it that y'all want to know what happened after y'all left?" Ryder asked.

"We stayed as long as we could, Ryder. No one wanted to leave you," said Katie quickly.

"It's okay. I told Rodan to leave. The ship would've been destroyed if it would've stayed a second later," explained Ryder.

"Yes, Ryder. For the sake of my conscience, I would like to know," said Nero.

Ryder sighed thinking back to the beginning. "Well, when I first woke up, I was in some room strapped down to a doctor's chair. The Council walked in and began asking me questions about us. Like: how long have we been working with the US? When was all this planned? Questions like that. After not answering, he hit me a few times; nothing serious," Ryder said shrugging and making a face as if the punches didn't matter.

"The plus side of having the Council members hit me was that I found out a lot of their powers. For instance: Colby is a Jedi too, Gambino can use multiple chakra natures, Stacy has a Nen ability that allows her to heal anyone as long as they aren't dead. Strike didn't do anything, so I couldn't find out anything about him. After that they took me to the jail." Ryder leaned back on the couch and looked up at the ceiling.

Recalling the baby snake, Ryder squirmed and twitched his nose.

"At the jail," continued Ryder still looking at the ceiling. "My torturer had the power of Doctor Manhattan. That means that he had the ability to create matter whenever he wanted. The perfect torturer. However, after our sessions, I was thrown into a cell that backed a fighting pit. There was one fighter who didn't look that intimidating, but he didn't lose a single time. He knocked everyone out within a few punches. The reason that this is important is because my cellmate used the commotion of me breaking out, to break him out."

Ryder turned his head to Nero and Katie then said, "My cellmate was my brother, Khilor."

"No fucking way," said Nero.

"Yep. He broke in or got himself sent there just to free this one guy," explained Ryder.

"Do you know anything else about him?" asked Katie.

"Only that he's a good fighter," said Ryder.

"Is that who you met with on top of the roof?" asked Katie.

Ryder nodded. "He said that next time we see each other, we'll be enemies and one of us won't be leaving the fight alive."

"I know that's gotta be hard, Ryder. He's your brother and al—"

Ryder cut Katie off and said, "He's our enemy. I'm going to kill him." His eyes went from their natural blue to orange and yellow.

Nero and Katie looked at each other because they both Ryder exerting a strong killing intent.

Nero nodded at Ryder and said, "Okay then. Just to make sure that your next fight with him won't be like the last one, you need to get stronger."

"I am stronger," Ryder replied quickly.

Nero smirked then pulled a jar out from a nearby travel bag. Inside the jar were two eyes that had the three-tome Sharingan. "Even stronger," said Nero with a smirk.

Ryder paused then nodded. Looking at Katie, he said, "You might want to leave the room for this."

"Shut up," she quickly rebutted. "I'm here to help."

She rose from the couch then walked to the infirmary. Inside she grabbed a few rags and a strip of white cloth.

Katie returned to Nero opening the jar. "I've heard stories about eye transplants. They can get a little bloody, and the person who is receiving the eyes, isn't supposed to expose them to light until they're ready," she explained.

"How will he know when they're ready?" Nero asked.

"He just will," responded Katie. "That's the best I can say about it."

Nero turned to Ryder and asked, "Are you read?"

Ryder took a deep breath and said, "Ready."

"So am I," said Nero reassuring himself. With one hand, he opened Ryder's eyelids. With his other hand, he slowly brought it to Ryder's eye, ready to remove it.

At the US base, President Reed, Generals Rodan, Hall, and Fox were all gathered in their meeting room on the Slipknot. The generals were sitting down while their television was running a news report. The report showed a female news anchor in front of the Taj Mahal.

"Breaking news coming from the Taj Mahal in Agra, India," she started. "There have been reports that Emperor Wakeman has come down with a life-threatening illness. Our sources told us that he woke up this morning with his clothes soaked in sweat. They immediately called a doctor, and he found out that he had a fever of one-hundred and seven degrees. They have him hooked up to IV's and are pumping fluids into him as we speak. The doctor does not know the cause of the fever, but he is confident that the Emperor will be healthy and back to normal by tomorrow morning. With WWN, this is Rebecca Corningstone signing off."

The TV went to comerical, so the President muted the volume then turned to his generals. He looked at each of them and said, "If this was an inside thing, an assassination from within, then we are looking at war within the next month or two."

"Boss," said Rodan pointing at the television.

The TV displayed a black and white screen that was filled with static. Suddenly, the static disappeared and a tall chair with red drapes in the background appeared. Footsteps could be heard coming from the side of the camera that was recording the message.

A young man in his mid-twenties appeared and sat on the chair. He had short, black hair that was flipped to one side. However, his most important feature were his red, pinwheel eyes. The Sharingan.

"That's Khilor," murmured General Hall.

Khilor looked up at the camera and took a deep breath.

Right before Khilor began to speak, Ryder, Nero, and Katie walked through the elevator door and into the meeting room chatting about the powers of the Council of Anubis.

The President and Generals turned to their company and shushed them and pointed to the television.

"It is with a heart full of sadness and grief that I must deliver this news. For anyone wondering, this new is being broadcasted to any television that is playing any Earth channel. To every radio frequency to television wave, this message is either being watched or listened to." Khilor took another deep breath.

"Today is a sad day for every person on Earth. Our loving Emperor, Delshad Wakeman has died from an extreme fever caused by an unknown sickness. In honor of the world's booming galactic economy, fertile crops, prosperous living, and world-wide peace, we will be televising the memorial and burial service," announced Khilor.

Beneath his face, a scrolling message appeared in blue letters. It read, 'Memorial service will take place tomorrow at 2 pm eastern time. Burial will be the following day at the same time. He will take the place of the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Arlington Cemetery.'

"How dare they burry that man at that spot. Such a disgrace to heroes that have died protecting what they loved," said President Reed.

Khilor continued to speak. "Now, for what we believe the cause of death to be. The Emperor was in the middle of finalizing terms for the Resistance's surrender when we believe one of their generals poisoned him."

The image cut from Khilor to footage that had yesterday's time stamp. It showed Emperor Wakeman and President Reed sitting at a meeting table talking with papers in front of them. Out of the side of the video, General Hall walked up to the Emperor with two glasses of whiskey in hand. The general handed Wakeman one glass and the President the other. Upon taking a sip of the drink, General Hall smiled and nodded at President Reed then walked away. The video stopped, and Khilor appeared again.

"The nod and smile is why we think the Resistance did this. Their purpose? We do not know at the moment. We speculate that it is a part of their plan to tear down the fabric of this great society. They can't stand seeing us make this world a better place. Doing better than them," said Khilor raising his voice.

"We do not plan on letting this go without consequence. That is why we have appointed a new Emperor," said Khilor straightening his posture. "Allow me to introduce, Emperor of the great planet Earth, Hannibal Emblom!"

Khilor stood up and walked away from the chair clapping his hands. In his place, a smaller man about fifty-five walked into frame. He was wearing a white suit with a blue button down shirt beneath it and a white fedora. Attached to his jacket was a white boutonniere.

With proper posture and voice that sounded elegant and sympathetic, Hannibal said, "Hello everyone. I am sorry for the horrendous new of our late emperor. He gave earth the chance to reach greatness, and look at the response! This planet has improved tremendously. However, his ruling was just a step towards greatness. It is time for us to continue," said Hannibal raising his voice and holding up his fist to encourage the viewers.

"We will achieve god-like status in THIS world. Earth will become perfect! However, in order to obtain these lofty goals, we must purge ourselves of the dirt that is among us. The _rats_ that we have allowed to be on the same pedestal as us." Hannibal took a deep breath for dramatic effect.

"Just like how the rats originated in Asia and spread across the world bring nothing but diseases," said Hannibal in a serious tone. "The Resistance has done the same. No, they are a disease in and of themselves. They are not worthy enough to even be represented by a lowly animal like a rat. They have invaded our bases and killed our loved ones!"

A video showed the US fighting inside the ISIS mountain base. A video then showed Ryder and Nero fighting on top of the Council of Anubis' academy.

"They have broken into our prisons and have freed murderous criminals!"

Another video showed Ryder kill his torturer then jump through the window that led to the roof. The video changed to the view of a camera on the roof. It showed Ryder and Nero jump into the Rogue Shadow and fly off.

General Rodan looked at Nero and Ryder and sighed.

"Just like the disease that they are, they will continue to spread their sick ideology like a plague. The New Plague! Be sharp my friends. Protect you loved ones, your city, your planet. If we do that, then we prevail against this New Plague. Be vigilant. So, my dear family. Will you join your efforts to mine and help make this planet even better? With this constant thorn in our side, we will not be able to prosper." Hannibal paused and straightened his posture.

"Now, in a few moments we will air the memorial service for Emperor Wakeman. Please stay and grieve for this planet's great loss with us," finished Hannibal. The video changed from Hannibal back to the lady reporter.

"Seems like he playing his cards," said Ryder.

President Reed and the generals turned in their seats and faced Ryder, Nero, and Katie. "Yes, he has," said the President. "I would ask about your hair and the visible scars, but there is no time."

General Hall held up a DVD. "What you just watched was the first of two DVDs that were sent to us. Literally arrived in front of the Slipknot."

The general put it in the DVD player. Once the static from the TV stopped, Hannibal appeared on the screen.

"Hello rats, assuming that you have watched my television broadcast. The time has come to squash your antics. You scum have no role in my universe With the Council of Anubis' help, your time has finally expired. I have prepared North America as our battlefield. A messenger will drop you the location momentarily. Count your final days puny Resistance. Oh, and I like the new hair color, Ryder," finished Hannibal with a smirk.

The image faded into white static.

The President turned off the TV and took out the disk. "Just to let you three know, this was our second time watching these tapes. The first time was right before you three walked in. We still do not know who this messenger is that he speaks of. We also have someone on their way to Earth to scout out North America. We plan on…"

_Do you feel that, Ryder?_

"Yeah. It's closing in fast."

Ryder's eyes turned orange and yellow then his Mangekyo Sharingan appeared. Rodan noticed this change and said to Ryder, "What's wrong?"

Ryder ignited his red lightsaber then suddenly, an orange aura surrounded everyone in the room. A bright flash of light blinded everyone's vision.

Reacting to the infiltrator, he threw his lightsaber at the same time as placing the enemy in a genjutsu.

Ryder found himself in a dark room that looked similar to the part of his own body that Lord Vader had laid claim to. He walked forward then looked down and saw water up to his ankles. Feeling an ominous chakra, Ryder looked up and made eye contact with a large, red fox. Its red eyes gleamed into Ryder's off colored Mangekyo Sharingan.

"So, this is your brother," the fox said as it turned around in the giant void. "Seems troublesome."

"I didn't know that you were a jedi too, brother," said a voice behind Ryder.

Standing behind him was a man a few years older than Ryder. His black hair flipped to one side.

"There's a lot you don't know about me," responded Ryder as he release his energy. Red chakra flowed from him and orange chakra flowed from Khilor.

The two simultaneously released more of their power which caused wind to ripple and flow through the void moving their hair and clothes.

Ryder lifted his hand and pointed it towards his brother. Suddenly, Khilor began getting warts and boils all over his body.

"You think this will slow me down?!" said Khilor chuckling. Right after he said that, he felt a sharp pain in his chest. Khilor gripped where his heart was and fell to a knee. He activated his own Mangekyo Sharingan and released himself from Ryder's genjutsu.

Nero's vision began to come back to him from the bright flash. In the corner of the room stood Khilor in his Nine-tails chakra cloak holding the blade to Ryder's lightsaber with a chakra hand. Khilor's head looked up and his eyes opened.

"Well it's good to see all of you too," said Khilor sarcastically.

"Leave or you'll die," said Ryder.

"Calm down baby brother. I brought a scroll for y'all. It's from the new Emperor." Khilor reached into his pouch and pulled out a scroll.

Right when Khilor tossed the scroll on the table, Nero entered his kakuja mode and attacked Khilor with two of his kagunes.

Very smoothly, Khilor dodged the attacks then said to Nero with a smirk, "Pathetically slow."

A bright flash of light blinded everyone for an instant, and when they could see again, Khilor was gone.

Ryder deactivated his Sharingan, looked at the President and said, "Looks like he was the messenger."

At that moment, Jackson burst into the room looking around frantically.

General Hall slammed his hand down on the table and yelled, "Who the hell was that?!"

Nero withdrew his kagune and kakuja and said, "That was Ryder's older brother, Connor. We know him as Khilor. The guy that attacked the academy on Earth. He's a Jinchuuriki with the Sharingan."

Ignoring the conversation. The President picked up the scroll and opened it. Everyone stopped talking and looked at him.

"It says," started President Reed. "We expect you all to be on OUR planet in three days. If not, we will hit you at full force where you are now and wipe our everyone completely. At least try to make this a little fun for us."

Everyone looked at each other and began mumbling.

Jackson looked at the President and asked, "What was that about, and how do they know where we're located?"

The President took a deep breath and said, "It was a declaration of war. I don't know how they knew we were here though. Regardless, they are in North America most likely. We have Ziggy and a few others scoping out the Rockies as a potential base for them."

General Rodan looked at the table. "This propaganda. The new plague. Some of my contacts have told me that there are people who reject the notion that the Resistance is a disease."

"It's evident that war is at our doorstep," said the President. "We must prepare more than ever to take down this Empire. In a few hours, we will hold a base-wide meeting, and we will announce the war. I plan on playing the videos too. I need you all there. Until then, you're free to gather supplies and whatnot. Everyone is dismissed."

Ryder, Nero, Katie, and Jackson walked to the elevator that already had its doors open. They walked in quietly and just stood in the elevator as it went down to floor twenty-eight.

"I heard what you did at the Council's academy, Ryder," said Jackson noticing all of Ryder's scars. "I guess you'll be able to get some revenge in a few days."

"Yeah, I guess so," said Ryder looking up at the ceiling.

"Did you get any intel on them?" Jackson asked.

"Yeah. I'll go over it with the squad leaders when it's time to prepare for the fight," said Ryder.

"Who's the strongest?" asked Jackson.

"It's hard to say. They're all strong to be honest," responded Ryder.

"Damn," said Jackson.

The elevator doors opened up. Jackson waved goodbye then walked out into the hallway on floor thirty-three.

"Are you going to talk to the other guys?" asked Nero.

"Yeah. I just want to rest for a few minutes," said Ryder. "I'll message everyone when I want to meet up. It'll probably be an hour or so before the meeting."

The elevator doors opened up, and Katie and Ryder got off. Nero waved goodbye then went down to his floor.

"How are you feeling?" asked Katie.

"Better," Ryder said smiling at her. "I'm assuming that you're coming over?"

"Of course," Katie said grabbing Ryder's hand. "I haven't been able to spend actual time with you in a long time."

"Why do I get the feeling that there won't be much talking," Ryder said with a smirk.

"Cause I know it will get your spirits up," she replied.

The two arrived at Ryder's room, and the doors automatically slid open thanks to Ryder using the Force.

Katie immediately pushed Ryder onto his old full-sized mattress bed. She took off her shirt and let down her hair.

"Well don't stop there," Ryder said.

Ryder opened his eyes to see his arm around a bare-backed Katie next to him. He yawned, and it was loud enough to wake up his girlfriend. He rolled over to face him.

"I'm glad you're back," she said kissing him on the lips.

"So am I," responded Ryder. "I didn't get this kind of special treatment from that prison."

Ryder rolled over to his nightstand and took a look at his communicator. It had one new message that was titled, 'Meeting at seven in the hanger. Attendance: Mandatory.'

"Looks like we have the meeting in forty-five minutes," said Ryder looking at the clock. "I'm going to send a message to the shadows and tell them that we will have a meeting in thirty minutes in training room three."

Katie got up out of the bed and put on her green, slim-fit tank top and her jean shorts. "What are you going to talk about in the meeting?" she asked putting her hair up into a ponytail.

"Really just answer question. Let them know our role in the war. Stuff like that," said Ryder putting on his gray long-sleeve hoodie.

"Well," she said walking up to his. He put his hands around her waist. "Just don't act all depressed when you answer questions."

"I'll try, but I mean it was actual torture. And I have to explain to them what happened to John and Avery," said Ryder.

"I know. I know," she said sulking.

Ryder grabbed his com off his bed and created a group message with the shadows. He typed, 'Meeting in training room three in ten minutes.'

"Murdoch, put those syringes in the drawer next to the sink," said a girl voice.

Murdoch walked over to a counter top and picked up a bag full of syringes. Messing around, he kept opening the wrong drawers asking, "This one?"

The girl had long blonde hair and was very fit. "The one in the middle of all the drawers you just opened," she said with a cute smile.

"Oh, I knew that," responded Murdoch coolly as he put the syringes in the right drawer. "Say Liz. Do you ever wish that you would've stayed on Ryder's crew?"

Liz sat down on the medical chair and quickly said, "And stay at the Council of Anubis' academy for all that time? I think things turned out pretty well for me here."

"Well, I know that there were a lot of times where I could have used you out there," said Murdoch as he turned and leaned up against the counter facing Liz.

"Uhm," Liz said laughing a little. "Used me?"

Murdoch face palmed himself. "I meant that there were a lot of times where we needed a doctor. No lie. I was literally cut in half."

"Holy shit. how are you still alive?"

"Well," said Murdoch rubbing the back of his head. "Turns out that I have a second power. I'm a vampire."

"Wait," said Liz. "An Edward Cullen Vampire, or a Count Dracula Vampire?"

Murdoch laughed. "Count Dracula. I'm not going to sparkle in the sunlight."

"Well darn," Liz said as she playfully snapped her finger.

*BING BING BING*

"That, would be my com," said Murdoch taking his communicator out from his gym shorts pocket.

"Ryder," he muttered.

"What is it?" asked Liz.

"Ryder's back. He's called a meeting," explained Murdoch rushing to make sure he had all of his things.

"You better get going the," said Liz. "Can't keep the boss waiting for long."

"You know he's not like that. He's our best friend," said Murdoch.

"I know. I'm just teasing. Tell him I said that I'm glad he's back," said Liz.

"Gotcha. See you at the meeting in the hanger?"

"Yepp. See ya there," Liz said shooing Murdoch away.

"I thought he said the meeting starts in ten minutes," said Hunter sitting on the ground with his legs sprawled out.

"He'll be here," said Nero.

"Well, there are only fifteen minutes until the big meeting starts, and we can't miss that. I think they would notice if we weren't there," said Murdoch.

"He's coming," said Blair. "It's strange. I can feel his presence."

The door opened and in walked Katie with Ryder following behind her. The first thing that Murdoch and the rest noticed was his hair. It was snow white, and it fell straight down instead of having a sweep to one side. Next, Ryder's complexion was a little bit paler. This contrast made it easier to notice how his hands were very tan.

Skibo almost said something, but Ryder spoke out first.

"Hey everyone. It's good to be back. Before I get into everything, I want to give y'all a run down of why I look the way I do. First, yes, I was tortured. That's why I have these scars, and my hands are a different color," he said raising them up for everyone to see.

"Second, I had the opportunity to save John and Avery, but I froze when I saw them in front of me. Now, they are both dead. Nero and Katie successfully helped me escape there. The final thing refers to the bigger meeting that starts in about ten minutes. War has been declared on us. It's very likely that we will all be split up. Some of us might stay together; there's no way of telling who. However, if one of us is near another and you see that the person is struggling. Stop what you're doing and help them. Every member of this team is valuable and incredibly strong."

Ryder looked around the room. Everyone's face was frozen. "Are there any question?"

Murdoch raised his hand. "Since your hair is now white, can we dye it to a different color. White _is_ the perfect base color for dying hair."

Ryder laughed. "If I wake up in the middle of the night to you trying to dye my hair, I'll throw you through a wall."

"Good thing he didn't say anything about the rest of us trying that," replied Skibo with a chuckle.

"Ha. Ha," said Ryder. "Let's get moving to the hanger. The meeting starts in a few minutes."

The Seven Shadows left the training room in a good mood. Their leader was in better spirits than what they thought he would've been in. After being tortured for a few days, they figured that his personality would have been gone. However, Nero and Murdoch were able to tell that there was something different about him besides the hair and scars.

While in the briefing room earlier that day, Nero noticed how the color of Ryder's Sharingan had changed. Instead of being a crimson red, there was more of a hint of orange in it. His pupil was now surrounded by a ring of yellow that looked like it was exploding outwards. During his free time between the briefing room and the shadow's meeting, Nero had actually gone to the archives to research what the cause could have been. He found a simple answer that had to do with Ryder's powers. He wasn't afraid to use the dark side.

Murdoch didn't see those changes, but the changes he felt were in demeanor and presence. Ryder now seemed more up tight, which he thought was fairly normal after being tortured. However, he could tell that Ryder was continuously on alert throughout the meeting. He was also putting out a dark and chilling aura, but it had a sharp heat to it that came from passion and determination.

In the hallways on the way to the hanger, Ryder was talking to Hunter and Skibo up at the front. Blair was right behind Ryder following them. Murdoch made his way to the back where Nero and Katie had been talking.

"Have you noticed anything _different_ about him?" asked Murdoch.

"Besides the common personality change after being tortured? Yes. His eyes are different. They can go from blue to orange and yellow in an instant. His Mangekyo is also oranger than their normal crimson. His pupils are also surrounded by yellow. I have a theory that seems pretty on point," explained Nero.

"What is it?" asked Katie eagerly.

"He's not afraid to use the dark side. A switch got flipped inside him that made him disregard the downsides of using the dark side of the Force," said Nero.

"What are those effects?" asked Murdoch.

"It can deteriorate your body. You begin to lose sight of morals and ethics. It can also change the way you view situations and the way they should be approached. Even though it grants you more strength, many dark side users grow over-confident with their power," explained Nero.

Murdoch stared at Ryder casually talking to Skibo and Hunter. "I understand that this is probably a bad thing, but with us going into a war, couldn't it be really good for us?"

Katie sighed. When Nero mentioned that his morals and ethics had changed, she could only focus on a certain scenario. "Possibly," she said quietly. "But think about this scenario. One that could very well happen. Say a powerful ISIS member takes one of us or even just a random US soldier hostage, and he tells Ryder to retreat or else the hostage will be killed. What do you think Ryder would do?"

Nero stared at the ground because he knew what the most likely answer would be.

"Easy," responded Murdoch. "He we think of a way to apprehend the ISIS member without harming the US soldier. He could use genjutsu or something."

"I believe that there is a small chance that he would do that. However, he could just as easily pierce through that hostage with his lightsaber or even a jutsu to kill the ISIS member when he's off guard."

Nero let out a tough sigh. "I agree. Even though he's Ryder, our best friend. We have to keep an eye out for him. If he's ever using the dark side for too long, we need to snap him out of it."

Murdoch didn't respond for the rest of the short-lived conversation because he knew what they said was true, but he didn't want it to be. He looked up and saw Ryder leading the Seven Shadows into the hanger where the entire US force was waiting.

"Why is literally everyone meeting here?"

"I saw a bright flash of light come from the President's meeting room."

"I bet this is just a house-keeping meeting."

Students gathered around were speculating on the reasoning for this meeting. Many students made it clear through the mumbles that they were meeting in the hanger because the message was important enough for the whole school to hear.

In front of all the students was a wooden stage that was supported by steel beams. After around five minutes of waiting, President Reed walked out to the middle where a podium and a microphone stood.

President Reed pulled the microphone out from its stand then walked in front of the podium. He cleared his throat.

"As everyone knows, we underwent a mission in which only few high-ranking officers were allowed to go on. The mission was for the Seven Shadows to guide a group of students that wished defect from the Council of Anubis out from their academy on Korriban. Well, with the appearance of the Seven Shadows and the new faces, we all know it was a success. However," said the President as he paced the stage. "One of our own was captured in the process. He was taken to a maximum security prison where he stayed for a few days. Fortunately, once our strike team reached the captive, he broke himself free and joined them.

The crowed of students cheered for Ryder as they knew that he was the captive.

"Even though we have one of our own back with us, the ISIS Empire fails to quit. About an hour ago, we picked up a television broadcast that described us as a disease to the whole population of Earth."

The President picked up a remote then pressed a green button in the middle. Suddenly, a large, white screen descended from the ceiling and the propaganda commercial from the earlier meeting played.

When the video finally ended, none of thee students said anything. The room was filled with shock and disbelief.

"Once we finished watching that video in my meeting, an ISIS official appeared in our room. He delivered a message that was sent to us by their new emperor. It stated that he expects us on Earth within three days or else he will send his entire army here to attack us," explained the President.

All the students began to talk to each other. A few were panicking, but most maintained their composure.

"There was just one purpose to this meeting," continued the President. "We are officially at war. In two days, we will leave for Earth… and we will fight in the largest battle in the history of _OUR_ planet. For some of you, you might have never been in the position to fight for something that you care for so much, not even on missions. Now! You will be fighting for our freedom, a planet's freedom, not just from tyranny, oppression, or prosecution… but from annihilation. Our opponent is strong, we can't underestimate them. But, we are stronger. We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! WE are going to live on! WE are going to survive! In three days when the battles begin, we will fight for our planet because no one else will! In three days, I'm not going to sit on my ass and do nothing. I'm going to march on the field of battle, and I'm going to go wherever they might be, and I'm going to kick that son of bitch Hannibal's ass so hard that the next wannabe Hannibal will feel it! Let them come with the armies of Hell; they will not win! And when the days of battle is over, _WE _will meet again in Heaven, or on the field of victory!"

Every student, professor, technician, soldier, official, and anyone else threw their hands up with cheers of excitement. They're blood was boiling. They were excited. The President told them straight up then inspired them completely to level the forces of ISIS.


	32. Chapter 31: Trust the Force

**Chapter 31: Trust the Force**

Slowly, the hanger began to fade back to its empty self. Where the entire US military was at rally, the gray panels on the ground and the construction tools were now as visible as the sun at noon. The echoes of chants and cheers from the President's speech had all died out. Now, Ryder and Katie sat alone.

The two sat on a plastic table and faced the Rogue Shadow as they sat in silence. Both contemplating their relationship and the dangers that faced them with the upcoming war. Ryder was wearing his usual clothes: dark gray shorts, a navy short-sleeve t-shirt that had a high collar, and Adidas shoes with white, crew socks.

Even though Ryder changed his outfit every so often, Katie didn't. This was something that he had noticed for a while now. She was wearing short, khaki shorts with a red flannel tied around her waist, a blue sports bra, and a dark green tank top that was cut a few inches beneath her breasts.

Breaking the ice, Katie said to Ryder, "Well, I think this breaks the record of the longest silence between us two."

Ryder did not say anything in reply. He only sighed.

Keeping eye contact with the floor, she said to him, "I know you went through a lot of painful things, Ryder. I know that there probably isn't anything that I can do to help either. But, everyone has been able to feel your continuous fall to the dark side." She finished talking and looked up at Ryder who was looking at the ground too. His pale, white hair hung past his lustrous blue eyes.

Without facing Katie, Ryder murmured, "I had to. It was the only way to survive that prison. I've led countless people to their death. No matter what path I choose, it's always a broken one. Never the right one. Because of that, I had to accept that those broken paths are who I am. My path will always be broken, and destruction or death will lay in my wake. That why I have to do whatever it takes to make sure that the people that _will_ inevitably die, won't be the ones that I care about."

Katie reached out and put her hand on Ryder's. It was cold. She felt like she was touching a corpse, but she firmly grasped it.

"People follow you because you are a great leader, Ryder. We are in war. They know the possible outcomes, but they still choose to follow you because they know that you will make the right choices. That's why, me, Hunter, Blair, Skibo, Murdoch, and even Nero won't leave your side."

Katie smiled as Ryder tilted his head towards her. His white hair hung down as one of his blue eyes appeared. However, it wasn't looking at Katie. It was looking past her. Confused, she turned her head to where Ryder was looking and saw General Rodan standing at the door.

"Thank you, Katie. I have to go, but I'll see you later," asked Ryder?

"Of course, but don't make me beat a smile on your face," she said with a chuckle.

A small smirk appeared on Ryder's pale face. He stood up and walked to General Rodan. The two walked through the hanger doors and continued down the hallway.

Katie leaned back and laid down on the plastic table. Looking up at the ceiling, a sense of wariness for Ryder washed over her.

Ryder followed closely behind General Hall as they walked towards the elevators. They reached the doors without saying a word to each other. Rodan pressed the button then looked at the digital screen that said what floor the elevator was at. It read, '34.'

Knowing it would take a long time to get onto the elevator, Rodan decided to start the conversation. "How do feel about the upcoming war?"

"We've been in war," responded Ryder quickly. "These are just the final battles. But, to answer your question, not too great."

Shocked with the answer, Rodan fired back, "And why is that?"

"ISIS has more quality and powerful abilities than we do, and we don't even know Hannibal's ability or even abilities," said Ryder shaking his head.

"But we have heart. Something to fight for," said Rodan.

Ryder looked up at his former teacher and said, "The more I fight, the less I believe that having heart actually matters. Someone could have all the heart they want, but when they come across a Jinchuuriki that wields the Mangekyo Sharingan, unless they have power, they will only meet despair."

The elevator doors opened, and Ryder walked in.

"I get what you're saying, trust me, I do, but hope is also something that lend more strength to someone. It could be courage, a little more physical strength, or even some more chakra or whatever. That's why having you talk and look like this is not good for morale. I know that there is nothing that you can do about your hair, but your attitude can change. Regardless of what you think, we need… I need you to look at least a little bit happier around the other people. Because people did notice how you weren't getting into the President's little pep talk earlier, and you're a key figure in this war."

Ryder sighed then lifted up his head. "Okay. So, what is it that you wanted to talk with me about?"

The elevator doors opened to floor, 19.

"Ah yes," said Rodan walking out. Very few people were in the hallway since this was the dining hall floor. "I wanted to get your input on our strategy for down there."

"What did Ziggy find down there," questioned Ryder?

"So, there will be two or three major battles. There is a ship factory in Chicago, and a few miles away is an ISIS academy. Ziggy thinks that the ship factory is bait for a surprise attack on us, so we want to hit the academy when they least expect it. Zakee sensed your brother there for a long period of time, so we think that he heads the forces there." Rodan paused and looked at Ryder's reaction.

_You aren't ready for him. He's too powerful,_ said Anakin's voice from deep within Ryder.

"Ziggy should lead them," said Ryder. "His sagejutsu would be a big help. He also knows the more ins and outs of the area."

Surprised by the answer, Rodan asked, "I thought you would have wanted to fight your brother?"

"Not yet," said Ryder. "There are things that I have to do before I can fight him."

"Hmmmm. Okay," said Rodan opening the cafeteria doors. No one was inside. "Next, the only other place that they are stationed is in the Rockies in Colorado. That's where there main forces are."

The two sat down at a table while Ryder began thinking about a strategy. '_Two groups are a must_,' he thought. '_But it would be more beneficial to have groups categorized on the range of their abilities. Also, since two groups will be diverted to different locations, we would need a way to stay connected. That means that we need a communications group too._'

_Make two groups of close-range combatants and two groups for people that can go mid-range to long range. Then take one group from each and combine them,_ said the once general from inside.

"What about people with just long-range abilities," asked Ryder?

_Make a group for them and send them with the groups that are going straight to Colorado. Open field battles are going to be the main focus for those groups and the long-range fighters will prove to be a better suit there than in an academy,_ explained Anakin.

Ryder looked back up at his former teacher and explained to him the strategy that the Dark Lord inside just thought of.

"I see. I see the advantage to having two groups of close and mid-range combatants. Who do you think should be a part of the communication team," asked Rodan?

"So, I would have President Reed there for sure. He doesn't have a power, but leadership and tactics are very good. Then I would have Dr. Rogers and Jerry there too. Lastly, Janice, Katie, and you," explained Ryder.

"Why me," asked Rodan?

"Because while everyone else is smart and can form a strategy, they need someone with real battle experience that can anticipate what the enemy will do when building a certain strategy. If we need you, then Jerry can just teleport you, too," said Ryder convincingly.

"Okay, so we would a group of close and mid-range guys attacking the academy, and the other half, along with the long-range troops, will attack ISIS in an open field fight before we get to the Rockies," asked Rodan?

"Yeah. Once we win those two fights, we'll regroup communication and all a mile or two out from their main base. The next day would be the final fight," explained Ryder.

"Will you be able to fight Khilor if Ziggy doesn't succeed," asked Rodan?

"If Khilor doesn't kill him, I think we could beat him if we team up," said Ryder.

"Do you think Khilor will kill him," asked Rodan?

"I'm not one-hundred percent sure, but I don't think he will. He'll want to rub it in my face how much he can toy with us. Hopefully Nero and the others will be able to force him to retreat. That way, everyone would be able to leave without having to worry about an attack."

Rodan didn't say anything after that explanation.

"What we really need is to figure out Hannibal's power is because he is our biggest threat," said Ryder.

"You're right. We have an idea of what his cabinet members powers are, but we know nothing about him. All we know is that he has some sort of power or influence over everyone that makes them fear and respect him," said Rodan.

"Question," announced Ryder.

"What is it," answered Rodan?

"Do you think Zakee is at his peak power? Will he get stronger," asked Ryder?

"He is at a limit right now. The only way for him to break through the sealing is by somehow learning a new chakra type or stronger jutsu," said Rodan. "Why do you ask?"

"Well, to put it bluntly, He and I are the strongest soldiers we've got. If he is at a ceiling, then I need to acquire a new power that will be able to help us defeat Hannibal," explained Ryder.

"How are you going to do that," asked Rodan?

"Maybe I have another power that the Roxy didn't pick up on. Like how it only knew that Murdoch was a Shinigami and not a vampire too. I just need to meditate on it," said Ryder.

"Okay," said Rodan. "Well, I'll leave you to it. Let me know if you come up with anything or have any other ideas. The President and the generals have a meeting, and I'll convey to them what you have said."

"Sounds good," said Ryder.

General Rodan stood up and began to walk towards the double doors. When he reached the doors, Rodan turned back to Ryder and said to him, "Make sure your team is ready. They will play a big role in upcoming battles."

Ryder nodded, and Rodan left with a soft smile.

'_I need to find a way to get stronger_,' thought Ryder.

'_Go to the training room,_' said Anakin. '_I have a few things that I want to show you.'_

Without saying anything back to the Force being that resided within him, Ryder left the cafeteria and walked to the elevator.

"Zakee. Report to the briefing room. Again. Zakee, report to the briefing room." The intercom cut off with a scratch.

Zakee was with Clayton, Jackson, Sarah, and Daisey in a lounge relaxing before they had to get ready to leave.

"What do you think they want," asked Sarah next to Zakee?

"No clue," he responded standing up. "They might just want to know more about the academy."

"I'm assuming that you'll be leading a group that is going there," said Jackson.

"I doubt it. Khilor is there, so Ryder might want to fight him," said Zakee.

"That makes sense. He kind of scares me now, with his pale hair and depressed demeaner. Do you think that he's ready to go and fight," asked Daisey?

"He's one of our strongest guys," said Clayton. "I know that he's only been back for a few days, but he has to be ready. I know that if I was him, I'd want nothing more than to take my revenge on them."

"In all honesty, I bet he's training right now," said Zakee. "I need to get going. I'll catch up with y'all later."

Zakee left the lounge and walked down the hall to the elevator. Right before he pressed the button to call for the elevator, he felt a deep, strong vibration beneath him. "What the hell is that?" Zakee muttered. "I bet it's someone training."

To ease his curiosity, Zakee decided to pay the training rooms a visit and see who want emitting this power.

The doors opened to the training rooms, so Zakee walked down the hallway peering into each room. Each room was empty, so he kept walking. At the last room, Zakee could feel the power stronger than ever. He looked through the window and saw Ryder releasing his aura.

Ryder looked different than his normal self. His hair was the same, but it seemed as if he gained muscle mass and height. He looked stronger, in the sense of physically and mentally. He looked ready for war.

'_How did he gain that muscle so quick_,' thought Zakee? '_I saw him two hours ago, and he did not look anything like this._'

Suddenly, a robot walked up to Ryder. Using the Force, Ryder lifted weights within it that allowed him to access any dueling partner. "Anakin Skywalker, please."

A blue gel-like aura surrounded the droid, and it began to take the appearance of the legendary Jedi.

"Difficulty change," said Ryder.

"Options," said the robot in Anakin's voice. "Level one through fifty."

"Fifty," said Ryder grabbing his lightsaber.

"Good luck," said the robot monotonously as it ignited its blue lightsaber.

In a blur, the two fought. Every so often, it looked as if the robot had the advantage, but Ryder would perform a counter to even everything back.

'_Wow. He's gotten good. Really good. I need to get going though_,' thought Zakee. He turned around and walked back into the elevator.

On the way up to the briefing room, Zakee began to think of ways that he would be able to get stronger.

"Well, I don't have a kekkei genkai, and I don't have the ability to acquire any sage of six paths chakra. Is the only way to get stronger by learning stronger jutsu? I might need to go visit Natsu and see if they can teach me anything."

The doors opened to KA-7 ready to greet Zakee.

"Welcome, Mister Zakee. The generals and the President are ready to meet with you at the table." KA-7 gestured towards the large table that he had sat by so many times.

"Thanks, KA," said Zakee walking past him as if he never saw him.

KA-7 looked behind Ziggy expecting to see his nemesis, Ryder's R2 unit. "Thank goodness that pile of junk did not come," said KA-7 walking back to the bridge. "I have had up to here with that thing."

Walking up to the table, Zakee was immediately told to take a seat by Rodan. '_A day and a half until war begins. I wonder what they want know_?'

"Zakee," began the President. "We have been thinking about strategies for this war. We have received ideas from each general and even other students. We have decided to combine General Rodan's plan and Ryder's plan. Everyone else will hear this when we land on Earth, but we want to inform you about it because you will be a leader for the assault on the academy and even for the next battles."

"The two of us will be spear heading the operation against the academy. We are planning a surprise attack on them. However, we aren't ignorant. A full on battle his highly likely to break out," said General Hall.

"At that point, you will be taking a squad and bust into the academy. While you do that, General Hall will be leading the ground assault in the front. The goal is to split their forces in two and divide their stronger soldiers. Because of you, we know that Khilor will most likely be there. We want you to be the one that fights him. Your sagejutsu will do better against him than General Hall's Metasume or Nero's ghoul powers and string-string fruit. Once the academy is taken care of, you two will lead everyone just south of Colorado Springs. There is a large area covered by sand dunes. It's called: Great Sand Dunes National Park. We will camp out on the eastern side of it. The next day, we will attack their main base."

"There is a total of four groups. Group one will be close-range combatants. Group two will be mid-range combatants. Group three will be made up of long- range combatants. Finally, group four will be in charge of communications and strategy. We will be staying back during a fight unless we are needed," explained the President. "Groups one and two will be split into two squads. That way a group of each will be at the academy and at the field battle."

"The field battle," interjected Zakee. "What's that?"

"Exactly what it sounds like it is," responded the President. "There will be a battle at the academy, but there will also be one in the middle of Kansas most likely. We will have more troops at that one because they will bring a lot of soldiers there."

"Who will be heading that fight," asked Zakee?

"General Fox and Lane. Ryder will also be a big part, but the two commanding captains will be these two," said the President.

Zakee nodded in understanding. "Have you split the troops into their respected groups?"

"No, we are doing that now. We wanted to ask you if there was anyone that you wanted at the academy specifically," replied Rodan.

Zakee paused to think, then responded with names. "Clayton, Hunter, and Murdoch."

"Interesting," responded General Hall. "I understand why you would want to have Clayton. He's smart, and the two of you have great chemistry. But, why the other two?"

"I want Hunter because of his wide variety of weapons. He's truly a ninja that is very capable within close quarters. I want Murdoch mainly to be out front with you and Nero. Him and Nero have good chemistry and trust. Also, he is an expert swordsman that spars with Ryder, and he know a wide variety of Hado and Bakudo spells."

"Solid choices, Ziggy," responded the President writing on his note pad. "We will make sure that they are with you at the academy. In the meantime, make sure that you are ready to go. Well rested too." President Reed looked up at his young ace then nodded with a gentle smile. "That's it. You're free to go."

Zakee gave his superiors a small bow then left for the elevator.

Down in the hanger, Katie was finishing up repairing the Rogue Shadow along with R2. She was on the top of star ship when her blow torch suddenly stopped working. She twisted the gas knob, but nothing was coming out.

Katie lifted her welding hood and looked down at her tanks and saw Ryder standing next to them with his hand on the main gas knob. He was wearing black ninja pants with black ninja sandals. His ankles and shins were taped white. A white hoodie with cutoff sleeves covered his torso. Parts of his white hair blended in with the cloth. Around his waist was his black Jedi belt with two lightsabers hanging from it.

Sighing with a smile, she said down to him, "Can you open the valve. I'm almost done."

In a voice that sounded like a plea, Ryder said, "You've been working non-stop, Katie. You need rest too."

"But I'm so close to finishing," she begged.

"R2, what time is it," he responded.

After the astromech droid voiced a series of beeps, Ryder looked back up to girl he was in love with. "You heard him. It's one in the morning. Come on. Your brain will be thankful."

Slowly, she removed her welding hood and placed it next to her blow torch. "Fine. I'm coming down."

Katie walked to the ladder that was leaning against the ship, and she climbed down slowly. Once she reached the bottom, she removed her leather gloves and threw them at Ryder playfully.

"Ow!" he said as he wrapped his arms around his chest to protect himself.

"Shut up, wimp," she replied shaking her head.

"Hurtful," Ryder responded with a high-pitched voice as she walked past him and to the door to the hanger.

Ryder rushed after her and put his arm around her. She turned her head to him and their eyes locked. Ryder stopped walking and asked her, "Hey, are we okay? I'd be stupid if I said I haven't changed, and I know I have. But I'm the same guy you met in the elevator after the academy first got attacked. And I still feel the same way about you."

Katie let out a breath while slowly blinking. Her light brown eyes reminded Ryder of a bowl of smooth, warm honey. "First, I'm sorry if I was really harsh on you earlier. The change was just very sudden and different," she said trying to find the right words to say. She then placed her hands on each side of Ryder's neck and let out a soft chuckle. "Second, yes we are okay. I know that you're the same guy that I met on that elevator after ISIS first attacked the academy. The same guy that hated the meetings with the President and the Generals just as much as I did." When she finished talking, Katie leaned in and gave him a kiss.

She pulled away then grabbed his hand. "Like you said a few minutes ago, let's get out of here. It's late."

As the two walked out of the hanger and into the elevator, Ryder could help to think of the last time that the two of them kissed, but he a time didn't come to mind. He smiled knowing that this person, this simple mechanic, was someone that he had to protect to matter the cost. The elevator closed with Ryder looking like he was in bliss.

Nero woke up the next morning and immediately opened the curtains to his window. The sun shined brightly and made the trees and grass around their ship seem to glow. Nero smiled.

He walked to his closet and threw on a dark green t-shirt and some white gym shorts. Without any shoes on, Nero walked out of his room and to a door that was about four down from his own. He gave it three hard knocks.

"Hold on!" yelled a voice from within.

"Hurry up Murdoch! You said you'd be ready to do a little sparring. I even let you sleep in until nine!" yelled Nero loud enough for another student to come out of his room to 'shush' Nero.

Without hearing anything from Murdoch's room, Nero leaned into the door to listen harder. Hearing Murdoch's and someone else's voice, Nero laughed to himself then slowly opened the door.

Quickly reacting to the door being opened, Murdoch threw a large blanket on top of his bed.

"Oh, hey Nero. I'm almost ready," said Murdoch stumbling with his words.

Nero smiled at the fact that there was a human-like hump underneath Murdoch's covers. He laughed then said to Murdoch, "Whatever you say, man. Meet you in the training room in ten?"

"Yeah, sure," he said quickly then glancing back at his bed.

Still smiling, Nero began to walk out of the room. Just before he grabbed the door and began closing it, he said back, "Hey Liz."

'_Damnit_,' thought Murdoch.

"Hey Nero," Liz responded before Nero shut the door.

"Aw come on," said Murdoch as his door shut.

Liz threw the covers from her face and began laughing.

"What's so funny to you?" Murdoch asked visibly upset.

"He knew the whole time that I was here. I'm sure he doesn't care either," she said sitting up in the bed with the covers covering her chest.

Tying his laces, Murdoch said in reply, "Yeah, but know everyone is going to know, and they're just going to crack jokes the whole time."

Acting like she was offended, Liz said, "Are you embarrassed to be with me?!"

Murdoch immediately stopped and began shaking his hands at her. "No no no no no. I'm not I promise."

"I kidding, Murdoch," she said laughing at him.

Murdoch accepted the defeat then finished tying his show. He walked over to her and kissed her on the cheek. "I'll be back later."

As he left the room, she yelled to him saying, "I'm taking a shirt!"

Murdoch did not responded as he began to sprint past some other students that were in the hallway on the way to the elevators.

"Was that Murdoch that just ran by?" Hunter asked Skibo and Blair looking through a window.

"Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was. I heard that he and Nero were going to spar this morning. I bet he overslept," responded Skibo taking a bite of his cereal.

"Speaking of, what are you two doing today?" asked Blair.

"I don't know man," said Skibo leaving his spoon in his bowl. "I kind of just want to relax. I mean, war starts tomorrow."

"Technically, its already started," said Hunter. "ISIS could attack us at any moment."

"I kind of want to go walking around outside," said Blair.

Surprised by the statement, Skibo questioned Blair saying, "Never really thought of you as the guy who takes walks outside. What makes you want to do that?"

"Like Hunter said, we're in a war. I could die tomorrow. If that does happen, I'd like to remember the green pastures here. The smell of the dew in the morning paired with the sight of the sun reflecting off the wet grass."

"Holy shit," said Hunter to Skibo. "Blair that was poetic as hell."

"You learn to appreciate the simple things in life," he responded.

Skibo leaned in to Hunter and said, "To be honest, that sounds really nice. I think I'm going to go with him."

Thinking of other possibilities while gently nodding his head, Hunter looked at Blair and asked, "Okay. So, when are we leaving?"

Ryder opened his eyes and rolled over to hopefully see Katie next to him. She wasn't there. He let out a sigh and thought, '_Ha she couldn't wait on fixing the ship.'_

He got out of bed and immediately took a shower. While bathing himself, Ryder began to create an itinerary in his.

'_First, I'll go eat breakfast. See if anyone else is in there. Then, I need to meditate. I still can't shake the feeling that I'm missing something. Once I finish, I'll meet up with the shadows to talk about the war. Make sure that everyone is okay and ready to go.'_

Ryder finished in the shower, and began to dry off outside.

'_Listen,' said a familiar voice from within._

At first, the sudden voice startled Ryder, but he did as he was told and began to listen with the Force.

Ryder could hear the footsteps of the students fill each hall of the Slipknot. He could hear Nero and Murdoch sparring with each other while Nero was making fun of Murdoch for sleeping with Liz. The hum of the cloaking device filled his head.

_'Listen deeper. Listen to the Force itself,' said the Force spirit._

Ryder slowed his breathing even farther. After a few seconds, he felt something. This something felt like a bubble who's surface was vibrating. Sudden spikes would appear randomly on this bubble. Suddenly, Ryder could feel multiple bubble that were behaving the same way.

'_Ryder_,' said a voice from one of the bubbles.

He began to search for the sound. It felt familiar. Ryder searched and searched, but the voice never came back, and he couldn't pinpoint the correct bubble.

Ryder opened his eyes and realized that he was still naked in his bathroom. Using a wind style jutsu, he completely dried himself off within a few seconds. Going through his drawer, Ryder picked out a pair of white, Nike gym shorts and a black shirt with the word 'SUPREME' written in white inside of red box. He then laced up red and white tennis shoes.

Ryder opened his room door and almost left before he remembered to grab his Jedi belt and lightsabers. Attaching it around his waist, he was finally off to complete his first task, breakfast.

As Ryder was about to walk into the cafeteria, Hunter, Blair, and Skibo walked out. "Oh hey, Ryder. Whatcha up to?" asked Skibo.

"Just gonna eat some breakfast then go meditate. What about y'all?" he asked back.

With an awkwardly smug expression, Hunter said, "We're going to take a walk outside. Enjoy the smell of the dew on the ground."

Confused, Ryder said, "Have fun?" He turned and walked into the cafeteria.

"You idiot," said Skibo as they walked to the elevators. "Don't steal Blair's words."

Nero and Murdoch sat down breathing heavily. "So, if you're a vampire too, how can you die?"

"No clue. I guess someone could stab me in the chest with a pike or shoot me with a silver bullet," responded Murdoch.

Nero began to laugh a loud. "Thank goodness Liz isn't a vampire cause I'm sure you stabbed her with your wood a few times."

Falling to his back, Murdoch said, "You have got to be kidding me. That's just nasty."

Still laughing, Nero said, "I'm just messing with you. I'm glad y'all are together. I knew y'all had some chemistry. I didn't know you like her." He put emphasis on the word, 'didn't.'

"Yeah well, when we got back from the Council's academy, we just kind of picked up where we left off," explained Murdoch.

"Are you going to tell everyone else?" Nero asked.

"Probably, just to get it over with. Doesn't Ryder want to meet up with everyone tonight?"

Nero tilted his head to think. "I'm pretty sure, but he'll let us know if he definitely wants to."

Sitting back up, Murdoch said, "By the way, I like how you're incorporating your String-String Devil Fruit more. It's been a while since I've seen you use it."

"Yeah. It's hard to find a way for the ghoul and string power to complement each other. But I did find out that I can use my string to manipulate others as well."

"Holy shit, Nero. That is hype. That can be very useful while you're far from battle."

"Yeah. I just need to get better at it."

Ryder was finishing his lunch just as the intercom turned on for a ship-wide announcement.

"Everyone aboard. Please note that the ship will leaving for Earth at twelve midnight tonight. We will be arriving at our destination at ten in the morning. In the meantime, eat well, and make sure that you are prepared. Thank you."

Ryder let out a deep breath and said to himself, "I hope everyone is ready for this."

He put his tray over near the trashcan and made his way to the training rooms. He walked past Nero and Murdoch fighting against each other. It was remarkable how great they had become. He let them be.

In the back corner of one of the training rooms was a meditation room that Ryder enjoyed going to, so he made his way to the room and sat Indian style. His mind has been focusing on the voice that called out to him since first hearing it.

"Anakin," said Ryder aloud.

Slowly, a blue, fog-like essence began to emerge from Ryder's chest. Gradually, the blue fog gathered together and formed into another person sitting mirrored to Ryder. Opening his eyes, Ryder saw the Force ghost of Anakin sitting peacefully in front of him. He wore the same Jedi robes that he donned before his fall to the dark side.

"_I heard it too,"_ he said.

"Where do you think it came from?" Ryder asked.

"_There only one way to find out," _explained Anakin. "_Let's both listen. I will calm the Force around you so that you can search farther and deeper."_

Ryder drew in air through his nose. As the air rushed in, the world began to open up. Instead of immediately focusing on the people and ships around him, Ryder became aware of the planets and stars around him. He could feel the spin of the planets, and the gases burning within the stars. The heat coming from the sun was hot, but it was calming yet violent.

His view of the solar system expanded, and the paths of the planets that orbit the sun suddenly appeared. The planets and sun seemed like they were breathing as the moved or flickered with fire.

"_Ryder_," said the same voice as before.

Ryder directed his attention to a small planet that was towards the bottom of the solar system. It was practically a floating rock with very limited vegetation. Taking another breath through the nose, Ryder sank farther into the Force. This allowed him to become one with the Force as it moved through and around the planet. By becoming one with the Force, Ryder was able to perceive what was on the planet. Feeling the Force call and lead him, Ryder found himself staring at a secluded cave on the side of a large rocky mountain.

Ryder could feel power permeate in the cave. The Force was strong there.

'_I know this presence_,' Ryder thought inching closer to the inviting mouth of the cave. '_This aura feels so familiar_.'

"You've finally come, Ryder."

Ryder immediately opened his eyes and looked down at his watch. It read, '8:24 pm.' He looked up at the Force ghost of Anakin, who was still meditating. "What do you think it means?" he asked Ryder.

"I'm not sure, but I feel to need to go there."

"The day before the war for your planet begins?" asked the legendary general.

"I'm not sure!" yelled out Ryder frustrated. "I feel like I'm once again leading my comrades to their death. If I'm not there to protect them, they will die!"

"Coming from someone with experience, that sounded fairly arrogant. The only tip I can give you is: follow the will of the Force. It will not lead you astray," said Anakin as his Force ghost slowly began to turn into the same blue smoke and enter Ryder's body.

"_Remember. Let the Force guide you_," said Anakin from within.

Ryder stood up and left the room. Walking towards the elevator, the doubts that clouded his judgement vanished, and Ryder knew what the will of the Force was for him. He pulled out his phone and sent an SOS message to the Shadows for the them to meet in one of the conference rooms near the classrooms.

Within fifteen minutes every Shadow was present in the room. "What's up, boss. I thought this meeting was going to be a bit earlier to be honest," said Skibo.

"I'm sorry everyone. I got caught up while meditating. The subject of this meeting is actually what I discovered while meditating," replied Ryder.

"What happened?" asked Nero curiously. After finishing his sparring session with Murdoch, he saw Ryder in the meditation room. Wanting to talk to him, he almost opened the door, but the aura coming from him was strong. Nero knew that he was deep in his meditation.

"I was able to dive deeper into the Force than I've ever been, I think. I felt it move and breath throughout the solar system like it was a living being. However, I've been hearing someone say my name while meditating, and I think I've found where it's coming from. I believe it's coming from a cave on Xena 2. I was really torn about if I should go or not, but I decided to fall the will of the Force, and it's telling me to go. I know war quite literally starts tomorrow, but I have to go and see who and why this thing has been calling out to me. I plan on leaving right away so that I can get back to Earth as quickly as possible," finished Ryder.

No one in the room questioned their leader's decision. They knew that if it was something worthy of him missing this important war for, then it was just that important.

"Go, Ryder," said Katie.

"Yeah, man. He can handle the battlefields until you get back," said Murdoch with a thumb up.

"Okay," said Ryder. "Blair, I do want you to tag along though. I think everyone else will be able to handle themselves on the field, and there are a few things that I want to teach you."

"As you wish," replied Blair bowing his head.

"I look forward to joining you in the battle to come. Meanwhile, do not hesitate or doubt yourself in battle. Collectively, we are the Seven Shadows of Hell. I'd say the most fearsome group of soldiers this solar system knows. What they don't realize, is that even when we are separated, we are still not people to mess with. Nero: the shadow of Cthulhu. A cosmic entity whose power is unrivaled. Murdoch: the shadow Abaddon. The Angel of Death. Katie: the shadow of Tartarus. The source of torment and suffering in the underworld. Skibo: the shadow of the Balrog. The demon of might. Hunter: the shadow of Cerberus. A ferocious beast of darkness that guards the gates of the underworld. And lastly, Blair: the shadow of the Dragon. A beast that can entice terror with only a stare. You are these shadows for a reason. Do not believe that any of y'all are powerless, because if you were, you would not be here right now. Fight well and bring victory us and death for the enemy. While I'm gone, Nero will be the head of the Shadows. If any of the generals ask about my where abouts, tell them that I had to leave, but I will be back as soon as possible."

Ryder looked at Blair and said, "It's time to go."

Blair nodded and followed Ryder to the door.

Before they left, Nero yelled out, "You better gain a new power or something. Our sparring has been too boring lately."

Ryder laughed and said, "It's only boring because you keep losing."

Blair followed Ryder out the door and through the hallways.

"Well everyone," started Nero. "Get ready for battle. We leave early in the morning." With that being said, the remaining Shadow left the room and went to their own room to finish preparing. Everyone except for Katie.

She rushed through the hallways and down to the hanger where Ryder and Blair were preparing the ship for take-off. Ryder, sitting in the pilot's chair turned to Blair and asked, "Are you ready?"

As he said that, Ryder saw passed Blair to Katie who was standing by the hanger doors. Without saying a word to Blair or even listening to his response, he jumped out of his chair and ran down the loading to embrace Katie in his arms.

"I can't believe that you were going to leave without saying good-bye," she said into his chest.

"Hahaha I'm so sorry. I have a lot on my mind. I'll be back before you know it," Ryder said comforting her.

She leaned away from him and kissed him on the lips. "You better be or else no more of those," she said smiling.

"Well obviously I can't live without them, so count on it," Ryder replied.

"I love you," she said after a moment of silence.

A soft and gentle smile stretched across Ryder's face. "I love you too." He leaned in and kissed her again.

"Now get out of here and hurry back," she said as she slapped his butt when Ryder turned to go back to the ship.

As she watched Ryder board the ship and fly out of the hanger, she couldn't help but to feel worried for him. He's in a fragile state right now. Very mendable. All he has from turning to the dark side for good is the Shadows. 'I hope the thing he's looking for with fulfill this curiosity that is taking him away from us,' she thought.

While Nero was packing a small bag of spare clothes and food pills, a loud dock came from his door. He walked over to the door and opened it.

"Where the hell is the Rogue Shadow going and who's on it?!" Rodan frantically asked.

"It was Ryder and Blair. They're going to Xena 2," explained Nero as he turned to continue packing.

"Why? We leave for war in the morning!" yelled Rodan.

"He said that the Force wants him to go there. He meditated about it for about seven hours today. He said that someone or something has been calling out his name from a cave there."

"Do you know when he will be back?" asked Rodan.

"Nope. He said that he will make it back as soon as he can though. That's all that matters for me," replied Nero.

"Damnit! He is a key part of our strategy. He can't just come and go as he pleases!"

With his red ghoul eyes, Nero glared back at Rodan and said, "Actually, he can do what he wants. The guy has sacrificed EVERYTHING for this country and has become the strongest soldier the US has to offer. Not only that, you are asking him to go out there and kill is only living family member. You've treated this man like a weapon, and now that he feels like he needs to do something, y'all are really going to try to stop him? Only days after living the most excruciating torturing, something so painful that it's changed his hair color. I suggest you plan on him not being there for the beginning, but he WILL show back up. Now, please leave me to my packing. You have things to discuss with the generals." Nero turned back to his bed and began putting more pills inside his bag.

Speechless, Rodan only nodded then walked back to the elevators reflecting on what Nero had said.


	33. Chapter 32: War Begins

**Chapter 32: War Begins**

Ryder and Blair fly out of the Slipknot's hanger, ready for the journey to Xena 2. Once the ship flies out of the atmosphere, Ryder activates mach-speed.

Looking at a map, Blair said, "According to the star charts, it will take us six hours to get there."

"Good," responded Ryder. "That will give us some time to train." Ryder rose from his seat and went back to the main hold. "Grab your sword and meet me in the training room."

Blair left the cockpit and did as he was instructed. He didn't see Ryder as a friend or even brother. Instead, Blair thought of Ryder as his master. The man that set him free from the chains that once bound his wrists. If it wasn't for Ryder, he would still be Khilor's mutt that did his dirty work.

Blair went to his room, grabbed his sword, then walked to the training room that was on the other side of the ship.

The two met face to face in the small room. Ryder's white hair and red eyes versus Blair's black hair and green eyes.

A while back, Katie reinforced the training room walls with a layer of a rare fabric that reduced the effect that one's aura would have on the surrounding. This allowed people to power up as much as they wanted to without the rest of the ship taking damage because of it.

Ryder and Blair began to power up. The pressure of both or their auras began to make other light materials in the room rise off the ground. Suddenly, in an instant the two began to spar.

Neither of them used any special abilities; they were only using the sword techniques that they knew. Naturally, Ryder had the upper hand in the fight since he was a master of all seven lightsaber forms, but he purposefully switched between them to keep Blair guessing.

Ryder jumped and twirled while Blair defended, countered, and even went on a strong offensive attack. Ryder easily used his smooth footwork to work around Blair's offensive attacks. His swings were strong and swift, but there wasn't emotion behind them. Something that was both bad and good.

As the fight continued, black smoke-like aura began to follow and surround Blair. Ryder could sense a power dramatically increasing with every swing. Each strike was heavier than the last. Ryder switch to form two which utilized the opponent's strength and momentum in order to counter the attacks.

Parrying the attacks to gauge how much farther Blair could go, Ryder used the Force to speed up his movements momentarily. He slid his back foot around so that the two were now back to back. Ryder swung his lightsaber around at chest height, and Blair simultaneously ducked to the ground. Quickly, Blair slid his foot around to knock Ryder's legs out from beneath him. Ryder jumped up and backwards in a stance that invited an attack.

Shaking from the Slipknot made Nero sit up in his bed. He checked his bedside clock which read, '12:03 pm.'

'_Ten hours, huh_,' he thought. '_Better get some more shut eye_. _Gotta be ready for the academy._'

Blair stood back up from taking a punch to the face. "Mixing punches with your attack, eh? Smart."

"I've had my fair share of battles. The more you mix; the more you're likely to catch the other guy off guard," explained Ryder.

Blair extended his palm out to Ryder and began to say, "Ye lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings—,"

Ryder held up his hand to cut him off and said, "Blair! Not in he—,"

Before Ryder could finish his sentence, Blair used shunpo to quickly get behind Ryder while his incantation distracted him. Once behind him, Blair swung into Ryder's side and sent him crashing into the wall of the training room.

Thankfully for the special walls, nothing was damaged. Confidently, Blair walked over to Ryder with a smug look and held out his hand to help him up.

"Come on," said Blair as they grasped hand. "That was the back end of my blade too."

Ryder got up with the help of Blair. He twisted his back to stretch it then said to him laughing a bit, "That was cheap. I was over there thinking that you were gonna try to blow me away with Hado."

"I'm not that dumb. There is no way that the ship would be able to withstand that," said Blair. "Go again?" he suggested.

"Ha! No way. I gotta let my body rest. We've been at this for about five hours. Have to make sure we're prepared for whatever we find there," explained Ryder.

The two began to exit the training room. They followed the hallway that led to the main hold and the cockpit.

"What do you think is calling you there?" asked Blair.

"I don't know, honestly. It might be a person. It could be an artifact. I just know that I need to go there and that you had to come too."

Ryder walked into the cockpit with Blair following him. He looked at the star map, which gave an arrival estimation and showed the time. It read, 'Time: 3:17 am – Time until Arrival: Ten hours and thirteen minutes.'

Ryder turned to Blair and said, "We have ten hours until we get there. Let's get some sleep. We can eat when we both wake up. Our body needs the rest."

Blair nodded and said, "Right. I'll see ya then." He turned and walked to his bedroom while Ryder turned and sat in the pilot's chair.

He pulled out his flip-phone to see if either Katie or Nero had contacted him. Neither had done so. Sighing as he stood up, Ryder left the darkness of the cockpit and went to his room.

*Beep Beep Beep Beep*

Nero sat up in his bed with a jolt. Annoyed with the sound of his alarm clock, he smashed the whole thing with one of his kagunes. It wasn't like it would be important after today.

"Shit. I crushed it before see the time." He wiped his eyes to get rid of the sleep, and his head began to clear up. "Okay, it's eight-thirty right now. I had set one hour and a half before we were supposed to land."

Nero rolled out of bed then walked to his dresser. '_Time to bring out the battle clothes_,' he thought. Going into his pants drawer, Nero grabbed a pair of black shorts and black compression pants. He then went into his shirt drawer and grabbed a compression, dri-fit long-sleeve shirt and a loose, short-sleeve, black hoodie.

Nero undressed then put on his black compression pants then his black shorts. After those, he put on black socks and black tennis shoes. Reaching out for his shirt, a knock came from his door.

"Come in," he said as he pulled his compression shirt over his head.

"Just making sure that you're up," said Murdoch opening the door. He was wearing a white shirt with a light pink scarf around his neck (symbolized his release and bankai). Grayish blue khaki pants covered his legs.

"I heard from a few guys that we are in the same squad. Can't let you start the day off bad if that's the case."

Now putting on his black hoodie, more like black, short-sleeve windbreaker, Nero asked him, "Who'd you hear that from?"

"Just from some guys in the hallway. Might not be true, but it'd be cool if it was. It would be to have someone out there with me who I have chemistry with," said Murdoch.

Looking Nero up and down, Murdoch noticed how everything was black. His 'hoodie' had a high collar with a gray zipper that extended down to his neck. It was the only thing he was wearing that wasn't black. Shoot, his hair was even brown enough to be considered black.

"Are you okay?" asked Murdoch with a smirk. "Are you trying to express something by the way that you're dressing?"

"Funny," said Nero as he walked to his nightstand and opened the drawer. "Rodan told me that I'll be with a group of two squads that is going to be attacking an academy at night." Nero grabbed a small black mask from his drawer and put it in his backpack. He then swung the backpack onto his back.

"Let's go get some food," he said walking out of the room. Murdoch followed and shut the door.

"So, you're going to an academy. Do you know where it is?" Murdoch asked.

"Not a clue. That's all I know. Is Liz joining us?" asked Nero.

"No, she's getting ready right now"

"Not enough time to do that last night?" Nero said jokingly.

"Not at all," Murdoch replied smiling while nodding.

"I… never mind," said Nero deciding to cut himself off.

The two arrived at the elevator with a large group of other students that were becoming soldiers today. All of them dressed ready for battle. The elevator doors opened, and everyone moved in making it crowded. About four different floor lights shone on the elevator panel. Luckily for Nero and Murdoch, the cafeteria floor was going to be the first stop. When the doors opened, about a quarter of them got out and made their way to where the food was.

Upon walking through the double doors of the cafeteria, Nero and Murdoch looked for the other Shadows. Over on one of the tables, Murdoch spotted Hunter in his black wife-beater tank-top and white scarf around his neck. Next to him sat Skibo, who was wearing a light green gi. To Skibo's right was Katie, who seemed to be left out of the conversation. "There they are," said Murdoch pointing to their table.

Nero and Murdoch went to the table and sat across from Katie since she seemed a little lonely at the moment. Murdoch couldn't help but notice how she was dressed. She was simply wearing daisy dukes with a mechanic's utility belt around her waist and a black crop top that left her stomach exposed. Her hair was pulled back into a ponytail except for one strand that was left to hand down the side of her face. She was also carrying two pistols that were strapped into a cross-draw shoulder holster. The shirt showed off her great chest without exposing cleavage.

"Are you okay?" asked Nero.

"Yeah. Today is just a stressful day," she responded.

"With that belt around your waist, I'm assuming that you were told that you'd be staying on the ship?" asked Murdoch.

"Yeah. They want me aboard just in case we need a ship and it might be broken."

"Hey, Katie," said Skibo turning from Hunter. "Tell them about your power with pistols!"

Nero and Murdoch looked at her in curiosity. They knew that she was an alchemist, but they thought that she didn't have any other powers.

"Well, since Skibo has given them away," said Katie.

"Eh. We were already curious," replied Murdoch.

"Were you," she said with a facial expression that faintly implied that Murdoch had been checking her out. She turned to Nero and said, "I can fire my own energy from these guns. My energy is my ammunition. I can even charge up the shots. The best part is that these pistols are metal."

Eyebrows raising, Nero said, "That means that you can manipulate them with your alchemist ability. Like creating a bayonet on them!"

"Exactly," She said smiling and nodding. "Anyways, you two need to eat up. Especially you, Grim Reaper." She was eyeing Nero and his clothes.

Nero smiled and shook off the dig on him then started eating his food. After about twenty minutes, the intercom turned on.

*Everyone. Please either sit down or grab onto something stable to prepare for landing. If you have anything, that you would not like to fall on the ground, in front of you, please secure that object*

Everyone around the tables grabbed a hold of the food tray.

*Landing in 10… 9… 8… 7… 6… 5… 4… 3… 2… 1… 0…*

At the end of the countdown, the ship began to shake a little bit as the landing gear emerged from the bottom and sides of the Slipknot. After a thud from hitting the ground stopped shaking the ship, the intercom came back on.

*Thank you for the smooth trip and landing. We are currently just south of St. Louis, Missouri in the Mark Twain National Forest. Once you are prepared to leave the ship please check your personal email or notification system to see your assigned squad. There are four groups: close range, mid-range, long range, and then communications. Once you know your group, please report to the corresponding tent outside. Thank you, and let's kick some ISIS ass! *

The intercom shut off and the entire roomed filled with the beeps from their phones or notification system. Once those stopped, there was no noise to follow. There wasn't another announcement. There was no conversation in the whole cafeteria. At that moment, the realization that war and death is upon them just sunk in.

Nero nodded to the other Shadows, and they all knew what he was thinking. With them really being the only ones in there with TRUE experience, they had to boost the morale.

Nero stood up from his seat along with the other Shadows and said, "It's about fuckin' time. I'm tired of beating up on you, Murdoch."

Murdoch laughed and continued saying, "I feel that. I'm ready to beat the shit out of those ISIS fucks."

"I've got fifty bucks saying that they don't have nearly the amount of trained and prepped soldiers as we do," said Katie banging her tray against the inside of the trash can.

Hunter put his hand over his head and said, "Are you joking? They have one thing going for them."

"What's that?" asked Skibo.

Hunter smiled and said, "They don't have to worry about what they want to eat in the next few days because it won't even matter."

All five of them walked out of the double doors of the cafeteria and headed towards the elevators.

"Did it work?" asked Skibo.

"Just give it a second—,"

Before Nero could finish his sentence, the whole cafeteria erupted in cheers and chants as all the soldiers began to clear their plates.

'_Nice,'_ thought Skibo smiling and nodding.

The group got in the elevator and before they knew it, they had reached the hanger. About seven ships were scattered about, and there were people running all over. Following Nero and Katie, Skibo said, "Hey! Before we go outside, let's check our messages and see what group we're in."

Everyone nodded in agreement. They walked to the side and sat at a community table that had others constantly passing by.

"Hell yea," said Hunter looking down at the list of his squad. "Me and Nero are in the same clos- range squad. AND he's the captain."

"Ooooo," said Murdoch. "Mr. too good for us.

"Yeah. Get on my level, Murdoch," Nero replied. "We also have General Hall and Javier."

"Damnit," said Skibo. "I'm the only one of us in my mid-range squad. At least I have Luca."

"Wow," said Murdoch smiling. "My squad is stacks. It's Ziggy, Clayton, Tommy Shelby, ME, AND Liz."

"Someone is going to have to make sure that you two don't camp next to each other," said Katie.

"No rules out here, Katie. It's like we're in the wild-wild-west," said Murdoch.

"Well y'all already know where I am. I'll be helping here with mechanics and communications, so if y'all ever need anything let me know. I can't believe that I'm about to say this, but, even you too, Murdoch," said Katie taking a deep breath to relax.

"Ha ha very funny, Katie. Have fun fixing my walkie talkie."

"Okay," said Nero refocusing the group. "We all know our assignment, and we all know where we are supposed to meet. We can't let Ryder down. We better be kicking ass by the time he gets back. Now, let's get out there and show everyone what it means to be a Shadow of Hell."

Everyone smiled due to a sense of pride then followed Nero out into the dense forest of Missouri. Nero and Hunter looked around and saw a sign that said, 'Group 1 – Squad 1. Group 2 – Squad 4. Generals and Captains.'

Nero turned to Hunter and said, "Sorry, bud. Maybe next time." Nero turned back to the tent and walked in. Inside was Ziggy, General Hall, Clayton Rudd, and General Rodan.

Rodan looked up and saw Nero come in alone. "Okay," he said waving Nero to come look at the map on a table. "We are here," he said pointing to green dot in the middle of Missouri. "The mission for these two team is to reach this red 'X.' This X is ISIS academy. It is 5 miles away from a large ship manufacturing plant. We have intel that suggests that ISIS believes that we will be going for that shipyard; however, we will actually be launching a surprise attack on the academy. They have many strong opponents there, but we have strong men too plus a great strategy. Ideally, we want the attack to begin at eleven o'clock tonight. Once y'all defeat them, the academy group will rejoin the main group back in Colorado. Y'all are more than welcome to go to the shipyard and use something of theirs to travel. For now, that is it. Clayton has the detailed strategy on how the attack on the academy will happen. Y'all can talk about on the way over. Jerry can teleport y'all about ten hours away from Chicago, so y'all will have to walk the rest. To get there with enough time to plan, these two squads need to leave by twelve which is in an hour and a half. Are there any questions?"

"Yes," Nero said. "Do we have any intel on who is there?"

Rodan turned to Ziggy who said, "Yes. We know that Khilor, Slade, and Chilton are there. Besides those three, there are definitely more, but I just don't know who they are."

Nero nodded for the information.

"Well, if that's it, you're dismissed. Actually," said Rodan. "Meet back at the beginning of this tent with your whole group at twelve."

Everyone nodded then left.

Skibo walked into his tent with General Fox next to him. Upon entering, General Lance noticed that everyone of importance was there, so he began.

"Good morning everyone. I hope everyone got some good rest. This will be the largest group we have. We have one close-range group, one mid-range group, and the only long-range group. The other group will be attacking an academy in Chicago. Us; however, will be in the main battle. A more classical fight. We are going to travel to Colorado by foot. What will most likely happen is that ISIS will meet us somewhere in between. At that point, anyone with a long-range attack will fire their shot. Anyone with a defensive power will provide cover. Subtly, we will send a few who are really fast to their side to disrupt their forces. Then we charge. This will be the biggest battle that we fight in the war, and it is very important that we win. If we don't win, then could very well either fortify their main base or take out the Slipknot. Either way, it will mean a loss for us. When we get to that face off, Jackson, I want you to be the leader of the long-range combatants. Skibo, this will be a great time to use your full counter since it only reflects special attacks, so focus on the defense and not the attack. General Fox, use one or two Hido spells, then throw up Bakudo 81 for defense. Allow me to reemphasize the importance of this fight. If you feel like you have nothing left in the tank, surpass what you're capable of. Originally, we had Ryder and Blair with this group, but they had to attend to something else. We don't have reinforcements. This is a must win. If we lose, we lose the war. With all this said, are there any questions?"

No one said anything, so General Lance concluded saying, "Okay, good. We are going to leave here at three in the afternoon. Jerry will be teleporting us to Emporia, Kansas. It's a small town north east of Wichita. From there, we will march west until we meet Isis. Report back here at three."

All the generals and captains left the room talking to each other. "Do you think I'll have enough time to fire a Gallick Gun or something?" asked Skibo to Jackson.

"I wouldn't. Maybe a few chi blasts but look for a strong attack then reflect it. That way, it won't hurt us, but it could do a lot of damage to them."

"Ah, okay gotcha," said Skibo. "I'll see ya in a little bit." Skibo veered away from him and walked past some running soldiers and to a table where he saw Nero and Hunter were sitting.

Noticing Skibo walking over to them, Nero asked, "How did your meeting go?"

"Good, I guess. We are getting teleported to Kansas then marching to Colorado until we meet ISIS face to face. At that point, it's battle time. What about y'all?"

"We're going to an academy and surprise attacking them," responded Hunter.

"Oh wow. That sounds interesting."

Murdoch walked up and said, "Yeah. There are gonna be a lot of strong people there. I get to try out a few techniques I've been working on."

"Sucks for Katie though," said Nero. "I know she wants to be on the battlefield."

"Yeah, but I guess she's needed at the ship more," said Hunter.

The group went silent for a few seconds.

"Well, I guess this could be the last time all of us are together," said Skibo.

"Hell no," responded Murdoch. "Like what Ryder said, we're strong. We'll meet up again."

A random person walking by slyly said to the group, "Yeah. Maybe in the afterlife."

Nero stood up and said, "Hey! What's your name?"

The one that made the comment looked up to the sky and let out a breath. "I'm Josh. Josh Sanders," he said turning to face Nero with a straight, emotionless face.

"Look," began Nero. "If you think like that, there's no point. A positive outlook when going into battle is key for success."

"Sounds good coming from you. You're one of the strongest that we have. I'm over here just a common ninja. Fodder. You can hold your own against other strong soldiers. I can't!" said Josh obviously aggravated and gaining attention.

Nero put an arm on Josh's shoulder. "Everyone is scared, Josh. It's understandable; this is war. Right now, we are fighting for this planet against someone who is fully evil. The things that he has done are vile and extremely horrendous. Me, along with my friends behind me, know that he and his close subordinates are way stronger than us. But fighting against him so that the people of this planet can experience freedom in a real way seems worth it to me. I could very well die today, tomorrow, or the day after that, but I'm eventually going to die any ways. I'd rather die defending the defenseless rather than just being another number in a body count. So, come on, Josh. The whole army needs YOU. No matter what you think, there is a reason why you were chosen to do what you've been assigned to. Give it your all. That's all that anyone could ask of you," said Nero.

Josh sighed and said, "I just don't want to die."

"Then don't," said Nero. "If you do all that you can plus a tad more. You'll defeat any opponent that you face."

"Okay," said Josh. "At least I know that I'll be fighting with you at the academy."

"Then let's kick some ass before we eventually kick the bucket," said Nero with a smile.

"Hell yeah," Josh responded then walked away.

Suddenly the intercom turned on…

*All generals, please report to tent C. All generals, please report to tent C.*

General Rodan was feeling very anxious. He just witnessed Nero talk to Josh about, really the possibility of death in the upcoming battles. He was worried that the majority of the 'soldiers' felt the same way. He wondered if they thought they were just body bags.

Suddenly, he felt a hand on his shoulder. "Come on, Rodan. We've got work to do."

The sheer presence of the President really set him at ease. "Alright, Mr. President."

"I told you. Call me Kaiden. You seem uptight. What's going on?" asked the President.

"I'm just worried. A few days ago, everyone here was just a student. Now, they're soldiers who many think that they are going to die within the next few days."

The two walked into tent C. No one was in there. "I understand, and I hate that they had to change that much. I will make sure that everyone will have a choice as to if they want to fight or not."

The other generals walked into the tent and began to stand around the middle table. "Gentlemen," said the President. "It is now eleven o'clock. In an hour, we will deploy our first group. The ones that will attack the academy. I trust that y'all have gone over the strategy. It's important to go after that academy because we need to either destroy or capture the shipyard that is about five miles away. With those ships, they would not be afraid to bombard us with laser cannons or other weapons during the battle."

President Reed pointed to Kansas on a map that was placed on the table. "General Lance and Fox, the field battle is incredibly important. That will be the main battle. It will decide who has the advantage. IF they win, they will be able to march here and completely destroy the Slipknot. At that point we would be finished. However, WHEN WE win, we will be able to continue to the Rockies. ISIS would backed into a corner. Regardless if Ryder and Blair are back by then, plan to attack their base by 7:30 am."

"Understood," said General Lance. "General Fox and I have some last-minute details that need working out before we leave. Is it okay if we leave this meeting right now?"

"Yes," said the President. The two generals left the tent and went to formulate their strategy.

The President turned to General Hall and Rodan. "Okay. When the fight at the academy is over, I need you, Hall, and Ziggy to fly back here immediately. I have a feeling that you two will be needed in the field battle."

"I agree," Hall complied. "Who do you want me to put in charge for the rest of the people? Nero?"

Rodan butted in and said, "If you don't mind, sir."

The President nodded to let him speak.

"Personally and realistically, I believe that we should allow Nero AND Clayton to command the remaining troops. Nero has battle experience, and he is very capable. Clayton, on the other hand, is a master strategist. He has an incredibly high IQ."

"Okay. Let's do that. I believe that all that need to be discussed for now. So, you two are free to roam and talk before both teams depart," finished the President as he turned to the tent's opening leaving the two generals.

"How do you feeling about staying back for these two fights?" asked General Hall.

"Of course, I don't like it, but those are my orders. I can still be effective here. Whatever he wants me doing must outweigh the affect I would have in the field or else he wouldn't make me stay," said Rodan.

"I agree with that," said Hall walking outside the tent with Rodan. "Whatever it is; don't screw it up."

"I was going to say the same thing to you," said Rodan laughing.

Throughout the next forty-five minutes, soldiers sat anxiously waiting for their time to go. Some were practicing their fighting against the air, and others reclined back on the group as if it was just another day. Regardless of how they felt, nervous, excited, or even depressed, their time to become heroes for their country was about to arrive.

The intercom sounded with a loud screech. "Shit, we need to fix that. Everyone that is going to the academy, it is twelve o'clock. You are to be at the meeting point ASAP."

The Shadows gathered together.

"Well, this is it, for at least two days. Be safe out there, Skibo. And you, Katie. Don't do anything reckless here," said Nero.

"I should be telling that to you, Nero," she said with a smile.

All of them huddled together and placed their arms around another.

"I better see y'all," said Skibo.

"Same back at you," responded Murdoch.

"Here's to living," said Hunter.

"Here's to the Shadows of Hell," said Nero pulling out a bottle of whiskey.

Laughing, Murdoch said, "Where the hell did you get that?"

After taking a gulp, Nero said, "I know some people."

He passed the bottle around, and everyone did their share in taking a swig of the whiskey. When it got back to Nero, he put the bottle in his bag. "When we all meet up again, we'll finish it."

"NERO! Come on!" said a voice at the tent.

"Well guys, see y'all later. By the way Murdoch, I bet I'll get more kills than you," said Skibo.

"Ah, you're full of shit," replied Murdoch as he walked to the tent flicking off his fellow Shadow.

"Okay! It seems like everyone is here," said Jerry. "So, I can only teleport all of you about ten away from Chicago. You will end up in a town called, Gilman. It's a little less than ten hours so that breaks will available; just not many. Also, I'm sure that they would be able to notice a sudden surge in power if I got y'all closer. Now, I need everyone to touch someone that is touching me. There has to be a connection to me for you to get teleported."

Everyone began to get close together. Hand went on shoulders. Lovers held hands; that included Murdoch and Liz. They closed their eyes.

Within a few seconds, they heard, "Okay, we're here."

Liz opened her eyes and saw a very small town that had a main road with a rail-road track running through its middle. Along the main street were a row of small family buildings on each side. She looked around and saw a road sign. "Look at that," she said to Murdoch softly. "Were on the corner of Crescent Street and Elm Street. Pretty spooky right?"

"Or a bad omen," said someone else nearby. An old woman walked out of her store and stared at them. "I know what y'all are doing here. Those ISIS assholes are messing with every town that's near Chicago. All the pollution that's going on is ridiculous."

General Hall walked up to the lady and said, "Don't worry. We'll drive them out for all of you. Just wait a few days."

She shooed them away as she said, "Yeah. Just like how I've been waiting for the past few years." The old lady walked into her building and slammed the door.

Hall turned to all the troops with him and yelled out to them, "THAT! Is why we must end this war. ISIS is killing this country; dare I say this world. Now! On to Chicago!"

General Hall led all the troops down the main road in the direction of their enemy's academy and shipyard.

Ryder and Blair sat in the cockpit staring at a small, rocky planet that they were coming up upon. There was nothing green; just brown rocks surrounded by the blackness of space. He looked down at the clock; it read, '1:22 pm.'

"Can you sense where we need to go?" asked Blair.

Softly but confidently, Ryder replied "Yeah…"

The ship flew down past very few clouds and to the surface. Up ahead, in the direction that they were traveling, a large storm was resting above a town. Cracks of lightning appeared to be striking the town along with the land surrounding it. Rain fell putting out fires, but smoke billowed and rose back up to the storm clouds. The rising smoke resembled the townspeople's prayers that would hopefully calm the storm.

"We can't fly through that," said Blair.

"Right. The cave is on the other side, so we have to walk through the town and then to the cave," said Ryder.

"Is the cave on the other side?" asked Blair.

"Yes. It's on a mountain behind the town."

Ryder grabbed the steering controls and throttle. He lowered the ship down to the ground at a safe distance away from the storm. It didn't seem like it was moving in any direction.

"R2, stay here. Take the ship back into orbit when we leave," commanded Ryder.

The two grabbed their weapons and a cloak with hood to keep them dry through the storm. The loading ramp opened and the two walked off already feeling the strength of the winds of the storm.

"Damn, that's strong," noticed Blair.

The Rogue Shadow flew up to the sky when Ryder and Blair arrived at the edge of the city. Immediately they see an old man who stops to talk to them.

"Why in hell would you come to this town?! Bad things always happen when we get visitors!" said the man trying to speak above the sound of the storm.

"I'm going to the cave that sits on the mountain behind the city; there's someone I have to meet there!" yelled Ryder.

"We don't speak of him here! GET OUT OF HERE!" yelled the old man visibly scared. "Before he devours US ALL!"

"That's insane!" yelled back Blair.

"How would you know! You're just a visitor that doesn't know the stories of that man. No, DEMON! Anyone who goes up or near that mountain never comes back!" said the old man visibly distraught.

"You've never heard him," said the man placing his hands on his ears. "His voice still echoes even though he is not here. As if these storms were enough, this demon has a hunger for human flesh and bones!" The old man ran down the abandoned road and into his house that had been boarded with planks of wood.

As soon as the man left Blair and Ryder, a bolt of lightning struck a few meters away from him and Ryder sending rocks towards them. Instinctively, Ryder ignited both of his lightsabers and sliced through any rock large enough to harm either of them.

"Thanks, Ryder," said Blair. "Do you think that you could do anything about this storm?"

Thinking about it, Ryder said, "I think so. Give me a second."

Ryder walked to the center of the road then looked up to the storm clouds that flashed with light as lightning circled inside them. He closed his eyes then held his palm up to the storm. Feeling the Force flow through the area and into the clouds; the storm was angry. The Force was vicious and unforgiving.

Ryder calmed himself and grabbed a hold of the Force within the clouds then began to pull it apart, separating the storm in two in hoped of dispersing it. As Ryder tried to tear the storm apart, he opened his eyes to be suddenly struck by multiple bolts of lightning.

After a few bolts, Ryder dove to the side of the road smoking from the electricity that had coursed through his body. Blair ran over to him and placed his hand on his back.

"Ryder! Are you okay?!"

Slowly getting back up to his feet, Ryder looked back up at the clouds. "I'll be fine. Damnit, there's nothing I can do. That lightning is too strong for me to be able to focus enough to disperse the clouds."

"That makes sense. It's almost as if the storm got mad when you tried to disperse it."

Taking a deep breath to regain some strength, Ryder said to Blair as he looked up at the mountain, "Let's get to that cave."

The two began walking through the barren street of the town. All windows were closed and boarded up, and no door was left open. As they left the city, Ryder looked at his watch, which read, '1:34 pm.'

The journey to the mountain did not look easy. Large, fallen rocks created a barricade-like wall around the mountain's trail; rocks tall and wide enough to never be moved without a wrecking ball.

"Blair, if you would do the honors," requested Ryder.

Blair walked up and unsheathed his Zanpakuto. With one slash against the massive boulder, it shattered into thousands of pieces, clearing the path.

After walking the trail and climbing up the steepest side of the mountain for an hour, Ryder and Blair finally came upon a small cave. Ryder paused and reached out with the Force. Immediately, he knew that THIS was the cave that had been calling out to him.

They walked in the cave, and it was pitch black. Ryder ignited both his purple and red lightsabers, and the colors clashed for superiority until the lights emitted merged into magenta. After taking a few steps in, Ryder looked to his left and saw a skeleton laying against the wall of the cave.

"Do you think he ate that one?" asked Blair. "I mean isn't that blood on the wall next to it?"

A deep red color of the blood on the wall distinguished itself from the light from the lightsabers.

"He wasn't eaten. If he was, there would be gnaw marks on his bones and there aren't any. Plus, the blood must've been from a fight since it's spatter in that pattern on the wall," explained Ryder as he deduced the scene.

"That's some impressive detective work. You must have a high IQ," said a voice deeper in the cave.

Ryder and Blair slowly turned to where the voice came from. Ryder held up his lightsabers so that they could see who it was. An older man, maybe in his mid-fifties, sat on top of a rock. He was wearing white sneakers, khaki shorts, and a black hoodie that covered his black hair that now had a few gray streaks in it due to age.

"You must be the demon of the mountain," responded Ryder. "The one that terrorizes the villagers."

"I never thought that you'd care about that to be honest, and I only do it when I know that visitors have come in search of me. It's a pretty good deterrent. I see you tried to stop it," laughed the demon looking at the scorch marks on Ryder's clothes.

"So, you created it. Why don't you go ahead and disband it since we made it here?" asked Ryder sternly.

"No no no no, Ryder. That's your job. I mean you came here to get stronger, didn't you?" suggested the older man.

"It WAS you who called me here. Just who are you really?" asked Ryder

"You don't recognize your name sake? Well I guess you wouldn't since it's been so long. My name is Ryder, and I've been trying to call you here for some time now," said the old man smiling.


End file.
